‘All of us in the Indian team want to bat like Suryakumar Yadav now’

In the India vs New Zealand 3rd T20I pre-match show, former New Zealand fast bowler Simon Doull got a hold of Suryakumar Yadav's bat and said it doesn't seem to have an edge for the last 18 months or so as everything seems to find the middle of the willow. That is perhaps the closest way to describe the current form of Suryakumar Yadav. The combination of strike rate and average he has shown this year has been unthinkable. After a super T20 World Cup in Australia, SKY smashed his second T20I hundred in the second match of the series against New Zealand in Mouth Maunganui to help India take a 1-0 lead.

Such was the mesmerising effect of his 111* off 51 balls that India opener Ishan Kishan said every member of the side now wants to bat like the right-hander from Mumbai. "I still badly wanted to be at the non-striker's end (when Surya is batting), he makes batting look so easy. All of us (in the Indian team) want to bat like him. He is so calm every time, I think everything is going according to plan for him. Off the field, in the last few years I played with him, he is very professional with his hydration and sleeping pattern and diet. We, youngsters, can learn a lot from him and how he is batting and his energy and work ethic are always hundred percent," Kishan said ahead of the series-deciding third and final T20I in Napier on Tuesday.

Promoted to number three, the 32-year-old toyed with the Kiwi bowlers to lift India to a challenging 191 for six after New Zealand put the visitors in to bat. In reply, the hosts were bowled out for 126. Surya's recent exploits have forced many to think that he may have entered the India set-up a good two to three years late. He admitted that being overlooked in the past was a bit frustrating. "I always keep going back to my past. When I am in the room or travelling with my wife, we keep talking about how the situation was two-three years ago. What is the situation now, what has changed now from then, we keep discussing that time.

"Obviously there was a bit of frustration that time but we always tried to see if there was something positive I could take out of that phase. How could I become a better cricketer, how to go one step ahead. After that time I tried to do different things, like eating good food, doing quality practice sessions, sleeping on time, so today I am reaping the benefits of all those things I have done then."

There is a feeling now that Surya can't do anything wrong in a cricket ground, and while some of his strokes also leave him amazed, the cricketer says he never tries to go ahead of the game.

"I also feel amazed seeing some strokes when I go back to my room, watching the highlights. Every time even if I do well or I am not doing well on that day, I do watch the highlights, but yeah, even I get surprised seeing those strokes."I never try to go ahead of the game, I never think today I am playing well so I will make 'x' number of runs because it is very important to stay in the present.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON

Click here to read article