India’s newly-appointed T20I skipper Suryakumar Yadav said he learnt a trick or two on how to win tournaments from his predecessor Rohit Sharma and hoped to implement them in the series against Sri Lanka starting Saturday.

India will play three T20Is and three ODIs against Sri Lanka and Suryakumar will lead the team in the three games in the shortest format of the game.

Addressing the media on the eve of the first T20I in Pallekele, Suryakumar heaped praises on Rohit and said he was a leader, both on and off the pitch. “What I have learnt from Rohit is that he was always a leader on the ground and off it. He was not just a captain – there is a lot of difference between the two. He was a leader who stood in the middle of the group and showed people the way. ‘How to play T20 cricket and how to win a tournament?’ That is what I have learnt from him,” he told reporters.

Speaking about his role as a captain and how he intends to lead the team, Suryakumar said India will continue to play the style of cricket that they have been following all these years. “The same train will go ahead; only the engine has changed and the bogies remain unchanged. Nothing changes – the brand of cricket remains the same. The captaincy role doesn’t change anything. It has given me an added responsibility. It is good that now I can do a ‘walk the talk’,” he elaborated.

The Indian captain said the time is ripe for players on the fringes to perform and seal their places in the Indian team. “Three players have retired and it will be difficult to fill the shoes. But new players have obviously practised a lot and played a lot. They are already doing well when they play franchise cricket and they have also done very well in the matches they played for India. I have a lot of faith in them that they will do well,” he said, referring to Rinku Singh and Riyan Parag.

India will play the first T20I on Saturday followed by the second on Sunday with the third being played on Tuesday.

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