Suryakumar Yadav was the hero for Team India in their thrilling victory over Australia in the opening match of a five-match T20 International series. Leading India for the first time, Suryakumar kept calm and delivered under pressure with a 42-ball 80 in a high-scoring match which went down to the last ball.
It was a proper T20 thriller but it did not have to go that way after a 112-run partnership between Suryakumar and Ishan Kishan for the third wicket. India had lost their openers early but the captain and Kishan took just 10 overs to change the course of the game before Australia threatened to come back into the match with some tight fielding effort.
However, Rinku Singh stayed cool and hit the last ball for a six when all India needed was one run.
Suryakumar Yadav was named Man-of-the-Match for his 42-ball 80. The India captain said he was thrilled with the way his men fought back after being under pressure by Australia. Suryakumar also said the fact that he had led India to victory in his first match as skipper was yet to sink in as he received the man-of-the-match award.
“I am very happy with the way the boys displayed their talent on the field. We were put under pressure, but the way everyone came back into the game was great,” Suryakumar told the host broadcasters in the post-match presentation ceremony.
“I think it’s a proud moment, whenever you play cricket, you think of representing India, it will take some time to sink in but I am very proud. I just felt there would be some dew but, there was none. I knew the ground was small. We thought we would be chasing 230, but the bowlers put us back. We just wanted to be positive.
“I told Kishan one thing, just keep batting, don’t think of the target. After 10 overs, it was a tailor-made situation. We knew what would happen later on. I left the luggage of the captaincy in the dressing room.
“I just tried to enjoy my batting, whether I am batting 10 or 40 balls. There was great support from the ground. [Message after he got out] I told them not to take the game too deep. The way the boys kept their nerve was great to see. It was a tailor-made situation for Rinku,” the Indian skipper added.
Plan was to give just 15-odd runs to the bowlers: Kishan
Ishan Kishan, who scored a quick 58 to put India’s chase back on track, credited the bowlers for restricting Australia to a total which was chaseable on a great batting pitch. Kishan lauded Mukesh Kumar, who bowled a miserly final over in the Australian innings and did not allow Marcus Stoinis and Tim David to run away with a taller score.
“The bowlers did a great job. We were put under pressure… Credit to Mukesh Kumar, the way he bowled. Everyone was eager to do well for the team, especially Rinku – it was his first game against a big team,” Kishan told the host broadcasters after India’s nail-biting win.
“Credit goes to Surya bhai for the way he played. He was taking on the bowlers… Plan was to give just 15-odd runs to the bowlers. The ball in which I got out, he was asking me to take a single. The communication was very good. Really happy because it’s a young side. We’ll make mistakes, but hopefully we’ll come back stronger as a bowling unit”, the 25-year-old concluded.
