Former Indian all-rounder Sridharan Sriram urged the Men in Blue to play the talented Tilak Varma at No. 4 in T20Is ahead of the five-match series against South Africa. The series begins tomorrow (December 9) with the opening encounter in Cuttack.Tilak has been in excellent form in T20Is this year, averaging over 42 at a strike rate of 127.94 in 16 matches. However, with adaptability and versatility at their forefront, Team India have often changed their batting order after the openers in the shortest format. It has resulted in Tilak batting across positions from No. 3 to 7 in T20Is.Talking about his ideal position in the batting order in the upcoming T20Is, Sriram said on Star Sports (9:28):"It must be No. 4 because he is a very good player of spin with the ability to hit timely boundaries. Another reason I say 4 is because Suryakumar Yadav must bat at No. 3. Surya's Impact will be terrific only if he bats at 3 as he can build on a great start. Only if a wicket falls too early, Tilak can bat at 3. But if the start is even decent, Tilak at 4 will be the best."Meanwhile, another former Indian cricketer, Sadagoppan Ramesh, believes India should alternate between Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma at No. 3 and 4, based on the opener dismissed."If Abhishek gets out, send in Tilak and if Gill gets out, you send in Suryakumar Yadav. Don't fiddle with the four too much. Between three and four, it can be based on the wicket that falls. But the sooner this is sorted out the better. In Australia, Surya suddenly batted at No. 3 and suddenly came later in the order. It's time to stop this confusion," he said.Ramesh added:"The openers will anyway be constant. Likewise, 3 and 4 can change based on the left-right combination, but it should stop there. Tilak and Surya should be there somewhere in the top four."Tilak boasts an impressive overall T20I record with 996 runs at an average of 47.42 and a strike rate of 146.68, including two centuries, in 36 matches."Suryakumar Yadav will experience that for the first time" - Sadagoppan RameshSadagoppan Ramesh believes skipper Suryakumar Yadav must rediscover his form before the 2026 T20 World Cup at home, given the massive expectations for the team from the Indian fans. The 35-year-old has been in dreadful form in T20Is this year, averaging 15.33 at a strike rate of 127.77 in 17 games."Though India won the Asia Cup, Surya's batting was well below expectations. 12. It's not going to be easy for him because India will be under pressure in a home T20 World Cup. That's because of the expectations from a billion people. Suryakumar Yadav will experience that for the first time," said Ramesh (via the aforementioned source).He added:"Secondly, if he goes into the tournament in good form, it'll help his captaincy. You don't want to be under pressure in a major tournament as a captain and a batter, which will be the case if he comes in with bad form. That could be very damaging, so he must fix a spot for himself in the next two series. He is a player capable of scoring a 100 in T20s and was a former World No. 1. So if he goes into the World Cup in great form, he'll handle the captaincy pressure better. Else, he'll be under tremendous pressure."Despite Surya's dismal batting form, his captaincy has been excellent as India have 13 out of their 15 completed T20Is this year.