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'AB de Villiers in his prime did it. He is right up there on world stage': Ravi Shastri lauds 'unreal' India star
Former Indian captain and ex-head coach of the senior national men's team, Ravi Shastri has heaped huge praise on the 31-year-old Indian batter.
Five-time IPL champions Mumbai Indians suffered a nightmarish collapse against Royal Challengers Bangalore in their latest game of the ongoing season. Mumbai, led by India's all-format captain Rohit Sharma, lost six wickets for 29 runs after an opening stand between the skipper and his opening partner Ishan Kishan. The exit of both batters exposed the struggling Mumbai top order, which faltered at the MCA Stadium, Pune, before Suryakumar Yadav gave Mumbai a glimmer of hope.
The 31-year-old Suryakumar was sublime during his stay at the crease, slamming six sixes in the last six overs and four boundaries to help his team reach a competitive 151/6 in 20 overs. He took charge with MI tottering at 79 for 6 and added 72 off 41 balls with Jaydev Unadkat, who remained unbeaten on 13. It was the second successive fifty for Suryakumar, who missed the first two games of the season while recovering from a finger injury.
Suryakumar's flamboyant knock comprising an array of shots was the lone bright spot for Mumbai, who currently are languishing ninth in the points table. He had also scored a brisk half-century in the previous game, bailing Mumbai out of a precarious situation.
Former Indian captain and ex-head coach of the senior national men's team, Ravi Shastri has heaped huge praise on the batter. He even drew comparisons between Suryakumar and AB de Villiers for their 360-degree batting prowess. Shastri bracketed the Indian among the best players on the world stage.
“Unbelievable. He played a gem in their last game. Today (Saturday) was really special. When you are 50/0 and then 89/6 and then your team scores 71 runs in the last 5 overs with Surya doing most of the damage, you know at the end of the knock as he passes by, say ‘Surya Namaskar’," Shastri said on Star Sports.
“At the stage when you have your team on the mat, to throw a counter-punch like he did, it was amazing.
“The variety of shots he plays, the wrist work, the power he brings to his game, his uncanny ability to look at where the gaps are and hit there, he is just very unreal. AB de Villiers in his prime did it. You won’t get too many like them in cricket, there was de Villiers, there is Buttler and Suryakumar. He is right up there on the world stage," he further added.
Mumbai Indians are ninth but the road towards redemption is becoming difficult with every passing match. They will now take on Punjab Kings in their next IPL 2022 match on Wednesday.
Chennai Super Kings have dropped to the bottom of the 10-team IPL table with Mumbai just above on ninth. Both IPL giants are starting at an early exit after four straight defeats.
