India, Feb. 10 -- India's T20 World Cup title defence began with a reminder that in this format, panic spreads fast. Against the United States in Mumbai, India were 77 for 6 at one stage, with the innings threatening to fold into a headline about complacency.

Instead, Suryakumar Yadav did what he has quietly made routine as captain: slow the noise, pick the safest scoring options, and then accelerate once the game stops wobbling. His unbeaten 84 off 49 balls lifted India to 161 for 9 and set up a 29-run win - the kind of start that looks comfortable on paper but is built on one player refusing to let a wobble become a collapse.

The rescue act is also the backdrop of what Gautam Gambhir has recently said about the Indian T20I captain. Sp...