Indian wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik has opined that right-hander Suryakumar Yadav should be given more time following his impressive performance with the bat during the final India-South Africa ODI.
'SKY', as Yadav is fondly called, missed the first two games as skipper KL Rahul and the management preferred Venkatesh Iyer. But when Yadav got a hit out, he made the most of it by scoring an impressive 39 and almost took his side over the line.
Karthik, while speaking to Cricbuzz, heaped rich praise on the batter, saying:
"Suryakumar Yadav is batting on a different planet altogether, the kind of shots, the kind of positions, and the execution put together. He made batting look way easier than it was in that situation. Give him a long run, I'm sure he will do wonders for India. But, he needs a long run, now every time he comes out, he is under pressure from the players above and below him. It is very hard to set fields for him."
Karthik continued:
{{/usCountry}}Karthik continued:
{{/usCountry}}"SKY will play with the same tempo in any position. For Mumbai Indians also, he plays in a similar way coming in at No.3. You will get a good amount of runs if you play him at No.4 or 5, but I will bat him at No.5 or 6 in ODI cricket because he turns around games in quick time on a consistent basis."
Right-hander Karthik also suggested a permanent spot for Ravindra Jadeja in the middle order, saying the all-rounder has matured and “knows how to take a game deep”.
“Jadeja is ready to bat at No.6, in fact, he is batting so well that he can play at No.5 as well. He is not the reckless kid anymore, he is using his head now and winning games with the bat, and in white-ball cricket, his stronger suit might be his batting. He will deliver for you consistently because he has got a good head on his shoulders and he knows how to take a game deep,” Karthik added.