SKY Ashwin Interview: ICC T20 World Cup 2022 – Suryakumar Yadav is continuing to assert his dominance as the No.1 batsman and all eyes are on India’s Mr 360 after the Men in Blue made it to the semi-finals. SKY smashed a 25-ball 61 on Sunday to help India top Group 2. Now ahead of the India vs England clash, Surya sat down with Ravichandran Ashwin to dissect his highs from the MCG. Follow IND vs ENG LIVE and T20 World Cup Live Updates on Insidesport.IN
SKY Ashwin Interview: Suryakumar Yadav credits rubber ball cricket for 360-degree game in SPECIAL chat with Ravi Ashwin, ‘I did not practise these in the nets’ – Follow IND vs ENG semifinal LIVE
Suryakumar Yadav took the world by storm on Sunday. It not only gave India the upper hand but it was an innings to behold. The 25 deliveries he faced included the slog sweep, paddle sweep, ramp shot, scoop, cut at short third, wristy flick over the square, straight drives and extra cover drives. All of those came in just 25 balls as he smashed 61 not out at the MCG.
From playing exquisite shots all around the park to excelling with the bat in the #T20WorldCup⚡️⚡️@ashwinravi99 interviews our very own ‘Mr. 360’ – @surya_14kumar 🙌 🙌 – By @RajalArora
Full interview 🎥 🔽 #TeamIndia | #INDvZIM https://t.co/zQ6U4Fk7JR pic.twitter.com/S5a5Q6Uxed
— BCCI (@BCCI) November 7, 2022
Ravichandran Ashwin watched on from the dugout and was mightily impressed by Surya’s pyrotechnics. In a special interview posted by BCCI, Ashwin addressed SKY’s comparisons with former South African captain AB de Villiers. Surya had previously mentioned that he tried to play like the Proteas legend, but it was all about finding the shorter boundary.
He said, “‘If you look at the boundary here, it is 80-84 meters, here the square boundary is also 75-80 meters big. I think just the rear boundary is small which is 60-65 metres. So I look at hitting in that direction and I have been successful in that.”
SKY Ashwin Interview: Suryakumar Yadav credits rubber ball cricket for 360-degree game in SPECIAL chat with Ravi Ashwin, ‘I did not practise these in the nets’ – Follow IND vs ENG semifinal LIVE
During the conversation, Ashwin revealed that Suryakumar Yadav never practised the same in the nets and it was all instinctive during the match. When pressed by the veteran on how he developed these shots, Surya was quick to give credit to the rubber ball cricket he played as a child growing up in Mumbai.
Surya said, “When I was young, I used to play cricket with a lot of rubber balls with my friends. He used to bowl fast with the wet ball from 17-18 yards. These shots came from there. I did not practice these shots in the nets.”
That said, Suryakumar has spent a lot of time perfecting his craft before executing it to perfection at the biggest stage. As per former cricket administrator Makarand Waigankar, Suryakumar Yadav spent 4 hours on days with former Mumbai opener Vinayak Mane.
Waigankar revealed that Suryakumar requested Parsi Gymkhana cricket secretary Khodadad for green a top bouncy pitch, replicating the conditions in Australia. Mane is a side arm specialist and he also invited different bowlers to have a go at Surya in the nets.
The Indian batter was all ears to Mane as they practised match simulations, a method Dinesh Karthik has also used in his training during his comeback. Waigankar revealed a lot of time and emphasis on perfecting strokes during these sessions.
SKY Ashwin Interview: Suryakumar Yadav credits rubber ball cricket for 360-degree game in SPECIAL chat with Ravi Ashwin, ‘I did not practise these in the nets’ – Follow IND vs ENG semifinal LIVE
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