'He walked the talk in CWC 2023' - Suryakumar Yadav looks to replicate Rohit Sharma's captaincy template in T20I series versus Australia

After losing the final of the ODI World Cup 2023 against Australia on Sunday, India will face the same opponent in the first game of a five-match T20I series on Thursday, November 23 in Visakhapatnam.

There have been major changes made to the squads of both teams. While Australia have seven players on their side who played in the recently-concluded World Cup, only stand-in captain Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, and Prasidh Krishna from India were part of the marquee event.

Ahead of the first T20I, Suryakumar praised regular captain Rohit Sharma for his fearless approach during the World Cup and said that he would like his players to follow the same template during the upcoming series.

"What he's done in the World Cup is one thing which will set an example. It was a completely different Rohit Sharma that you saw. I mean, he literally walked the talk; what we spoke about in the team meetings, he did the same thing on the ground. We are very proud of him. As a leader, he led by example and we'll try and replicate the same thing," Suryakumar said in the pre-match press conference.

Rohit amassed 597 runs in 11 innings at an average of 54.27 and a noteworthy strike rate of 125.95, finishing as the second-highest run-getter in the 10-team tournament. He also hit more sixes (31) than any other player in the competition.

The 33-year-old wanted his team to be "selfless" and said that the players know how he operates as they have played with and against him for many years during the Indian Premier League (IPL).

"What I told them [squad] when I met them in the afternoon today was let's be very selfless when we go into the field. Because I'm a guy who doesn't think too much about the personal milestones and instead thinks of the team's goal. And I've always told them that you have to keep the team first and then whatever comes after that, you can take your call. And I've played with them a lot of times during the IPL and a few India games as well, so they know how I function. And it wasn't that difficult and we are really excited to go about in the series," Suryakumar added.

It is difficult. It will take time: Suryakumar

The flamboyant batter said that it will take some time to heal from the World Cup final defeat. However, with a new set of players, and with "great energy", Suryakumar and Co. are all set for the upcoming T20I series.

"It is difficult. It will take time. I mean it can't be that you get up the next morning and you forget everything that happened. It was a long tournament and obviously we would have loved to win but then as you say, when you get up in the morning, there's always sunrise again, there's light at the end of the tunnel. You have to forget it. Move on. It's a fresh team. New boys, great energy, so we are really looking forward to this T20 series," Suryakumar said.

"I mean, it is obviously a little disappointing. But at the end, when you look back at the journey, it was a really great campaign [for] each and every member - not only the players but also the support staff. All of India and all our families were very proud of the way each and everyone displayed their talent on the ground. That was the positive, the brand of cricket which we played throughout the tournament, and we can be very proud of that," he added.

The T20 World Cup is scheduled to be held in 2024 in the West Indies and USA. The younger crop of players who have been selected in this series for the Indian team will look to impress the selectors against a buoyant away side.