Suryakumar Yadav endured a prolonged lean patch that stretched across 23 innings, but once the tide turned, the runs flowed again: a return to form, he says, has been building over the past year. The Indian skipper reflected on his journey after being named Player of the Series in India’s emphatic 4-1 T20I series win over New Zealand.

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Suryakumar finished the series as the leading run-scorer, piling up 242 runs at a strike rate close to 200, including three fifty-plus scores in the five-match contest.

“It feels really good. It’s been a long year and a long wait for moments like this. I’ve always dreamt about when this time would come,” a beaming Suryakumar said after the final match.

Asked about the difficult phase he endured over the past year, the Mumbai batter responded with his trademark humour.

“I think the ‘Sky’ wasn’t blue for a year,” he quipped. “But that’s life. It’s part of the journey. I took it in my stride, went back to the drawing board and tried to understand what was going wrong.”

Suryakumar added that the break between the South Africa T20Is and the New Zealand series gave him the time he needed to fine-tune his game.

“After the last series, I got two or three weeks where I spent time with close friends. They told me a few important things I needed to follow. That’s a sportsperson’s life,” he said.

“I’ve seen so many careers, not just in cricket, where players go through these phases. I knew my time would come if I kept doing the small things right. I’m really happy with how things have turned out.”

Throughout his slump, Suryakumar repeatedly insisted that he was not out of form, only short of runs — a belief that was fully vindicated against New Zealand.

“I kept doing the same things I’ve been doing over the last year and stuck to my routines. I knew I wasn’t out of form, just out of runs. It’s been a very good series, and going into the World Cup feeling like this is really special,” he said.

Batting with Abhishek Sharma brings clarity: Kishan

Ishan Kishan, who has enjoyed a strong comeback to international cricket, credited his partnership with Abhishek Sharma for reinforcing the importance of intent in the shortest format.

“Batting alongside Abhishek really helps. You see his intent, you understand the momentum the team needs, and then you just try to watch the ball and play accordingly,” said Kishan, who followed his 80-plus knock in the second T20I with a blazing maiden T20I century.

Kishan reached his hundred off just 42 balls, with his final 50 runs coming in a mere 14 deliveries.

“I think that’s the mindset of everyone in our team now. Even if you’re close to a milestone, it doesn’t really matter,” he said.

“If you start taking singles at that stage, you might later feel you missed an opportunity to go big. If the ball is there to hit, you have to go for it. The focus is on winning matches, not personal milestones.”

Plenty of positives despite loss, says Santner

Despite New Zealand suffering a 1-4 series defeat, captain Mitchell Santner remained upbeat, insisting there were plenty of positives to take ahead of the T20 World Cup.

“I think when you’re challenged throughout a series, that’s always a good thing,” Santner said. “You put both your batters and bowlers under pressure, and you can only learn from that. From that point of view, it’s been a really good series for us.”

“Obviously the results haven’t gone our way, but there are learnings from every game. As a bowling unit, we’ve got to find ways against very good batters, guys who deal in boundaries and sixes,” he added.