The T20I king has returned to his throne. With his world’s best batter mantle taken over by Travis Head, Suryakumar Yadav decided upon himself to not only get what he deserves back but silence his critics as well. Labeled as a ‘minnow basher’ by many, Surya decided to show his best in the most challenging condition and the highest pressure match (India vs England semifinal).
Playing on a surface that kept low, where the ball wasn’t coming onto the bat, and with Virat Kohli-Rishabh Pant back in the hut, SKY showed his 360-degree batting had no limit. With skipper Rohit Sharma alongside him, he guided India to a respectable total.
Suryakumar ‘adaptable’ Yadav
Rohit had earlier appreciated Surya for showing that ‘he’s got a different game as well’ when he took India home against the USA. He did that against England as well. With boundaries coming far and between, he relied on his strike rotation, and when that bad ball came, he pouched on it.
Even part-timers like Liam Livingstone were unplayable at times. The ball was getting stuck in the pitch, spinning and keeping low. So he decided to take the pacers on. Although India was going above 7.5 runs an over for the most part, it was that second Sam Curran over that turned it around as he smashed the pacer for 11 off 3 and helped India to 171.
Surya had scored just 23(19) at one point. He’d realized this wasn’t a pitch where 200 was par. It was evident that even 150 could be defended here, and that’s how he played. He went on to score 47(36) with 6 boundaries to his name. His strike rate (130.56) may be 40 less than his average, but this was one of the best knocks he’s ever played in T20 cricket.
