AAHMEDABAD: After Rahul Dravid finished his tenure as the Indian cricket team's head coach, the then captain Rohit Sharma had talked about how the legend was perceived to be his "work wife" by his better half.
When one watches his T20 successor Suryakumar Yadav speak about current head coach Gautam Gambhir, the equation seems as comfortable and built on mutual trust and respect as it was between Rohit and Dravid.
"I think I have played cricket with Gauti bhai for four years (in Kolkata Knight Riders) and I knew how he thinks. He will take two steps, I will take two and we will meet somewhere in the middle," Suryakumar said when asked about his relationship with Gambhir since the duo started headlining the shortest format team after the 2024 T20 World Cup triumph under Dravid and Rohit.
Suryakumar said that in these two years, the duo has never had an argument and didn't need to burn the midnight oil to figure out an ideal playing eleven.
"Because we were always on the same page, since we started working together, from the Sri Lanka series, when we went to Sri Lanka, from then till now, I don't remember any time we had an argument over a player," revealed the Mumbaikar.
"Whether we should play a particular player or not. We both were always interested in making the team win. How we can put a player in a position that can benefit the team," said the skipper, who led the side to a successful defence of the 2024 title with a 96-run win over New Zealand in the final here.
At times familiarity with one's working methods does help in preparing a long-term blue-print, according to Suryakumar.
"I knew from the beginning what our expectations would be from each other. Many times we have talked about the team, about the playing 11 or 15, who we have to choose, and 14 players have always been the same.
"So, if the success rate is this high, we don't need to discuss it so much. Our goal was to achieve something good together. That's why we were comfortable with any selection call," Suryakumar said.
"If you want to win the World Cup, it is very important for both to be on the same page," he summarised the long and short of their professional relationship.
When someone isn't doing well, spend time with him
Suryakumar's leadership seems heavily inspired by Rohit, who earned respect by becoming the anchor for those navigating choppy waters.
That arm of comfort around a beleaguered player is a must, said Suryakumar, referring to guys like Sanju Samson and Abhishek Sharma, both of whom recovered from difficult phases to come good at crucial points in the tournament.
"When someone is not doing well, you try and spend time with him, take him out for dinners, talk to him, because those are the players who at the right time will do something special for you like how Abhishek did just now and Sanju did in the last three games," he said.
"Performing their roles, understanding their responsibilities, chipping in at the right time, talking to each player when someone is not doing well. That is more important for me. So all these things really matter to me."
He once again stressed on "freedom of speech" being his dressing room mantra.
"I think freedom of speech in the dressing room - that is very important. If you don't listen to everyone, you can't take everyone together and win a trophy," he said.
Can't cheat man in the mirror
Suryakumar feels that one needs to understand that like in any other sport, there will be more failures than success but it is the inherent honesty in effort that will individuals forward.
"I think it is important to understand that you will definitely fail more times than you succeed in sports. I have seen it last year in 2025. The whole year I couldn't get a 50. It took me 400 plus days to get a 50 for India. But that's what I told the boys, the same thing. Ups and downs will definitely keep on coming in sport," he said.
"You have to understand that you need to respect the game. You have to try and spend time with all the good people around you. Be true to yourself. You can't cheat the man in the mirror when you get up in the morning or you're going to sleep."
Each player is a different individual and it is necessary to understand their character traits in order to be a good leader, feels Suryakumar.
"So, everyone is different. They bring a different skill to the table. So, you need to speak to them, understand their temperaments, understand them. That is actually very important and that's what we did throughout the last one and a half years, two years.
"We wanted to understand how these people are, when do we press the pedal, when do we leave them alone. I think that is very important and that is what we did," he said.
