A candid moment between Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma caught cricket fans’ attention ahead of the IPL 2026 season. The short video, shared by Star Sports on social media platforms, took center stage as the conversation was evidence of the bond between the Mumbai Indian players.
In the IPL, Hardik Pandya is set to lead the team while Suryakumar Yadav is the Team India captain in the T20I format. In both set-ups, along with Yadav and Pandya, Varma is a constant figure.
A candid moment between Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma ahead of the IPL 2026 season
In the video, which was shot for the Superstars Mastimania show, Suryakumar Yadav was asked to describe Tilak Varma. In reply, what Yadav said could not be possible without a healthy relationship between the players in the squad.
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The host asked Surya if there was something about Tilak that the world did not know. The team India captain, in reply, said, “Tilak is very irritating and annoying”.
Varma replied more sharply. He asked Yadav whether he would be going to bat at number 3 for the Mumbai Indian in the upcoming Indian Premier League season. Suryakumar tackled the question with pure logic. He turned the arrow towards Hardik Pandya, as he is the captain of the franchise. Yadav suggested that Varma ask Pandya about his batting role in the team.
Tilak Varma to bat at No. 3 for Mumbai Indians?
“Pahle ye batao 3 no ja raha hu ya nahi main? (First, tell me if I will be batting at number three or not),” Tilak Varma questioned Suryakumar Yadav. “Pata nahi, ab IPL me main to nahi hu captain, I think tujhe Hardik se puchhna padega (I don’t know. I am no longer your captain in the IPL. I think you will have to ask Hardik),” Yadav’s reply came spot on.
What the world doesn’t know about Tilak Varma? 🤫
Will he take charge at No.3? Surya spills it all! ⚡
Superstar vibes, unfiltered masti, and pure MI energy 💙#TATAIPL 2026 👉 #RCBvSRH | SAT, 28th MAR, 5.30 PM pic.twitter.com/qBnYt2PEej
— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) March 20, 2026
In the past, when India faced South Africa in 2024 at the Wanderers Stadium in Sandton, Tilak Varma came to bat at the number three position and smashed a century to help the team secure a mammoth total in the 20-over match. After the match, Suryakumar Yadav, the captain, revealed that the batter himself instigated the team management to send him to bat in the important role.
In the match, the left-handed batter scored an unbeaten 120 off 47 balls, with nine 4s and 10 6s for a strike rate of 255.32. India posted a massive total of 283 runs in 20 overs and eventually won the match against the hosts, South Africa, by 135 runs.
Suryakumar Yadav backed Tilak Varma during the 2026 T20 World Cup as well
Even in the recently concluded 2026 T20 World Cup, where Varma struggled a lot to find his peak form throughout the tournament, the skipper backed him consistently despite a lot of criticism. In the upcoming Indian Premier League, Varma will be under the spotlight with the Mumbai Indians.
In the previous IPL season, the middle-order batter scored 343 runs in 16 matches to maintain a batting average of 31.18. His IPL 2025 batting stats were supported by a couple of half-centuries.
Read More: “He can bat like IPL 2016”: Ex-CSK spinner predicts Virat Kohli to dominate IPL again
