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‘Even Kohli knew that if I bat on, we will win’; Suryakumar ‘happy’ to be sledged by Virat in IPL 2020
While speaking in a recent Instagram live session with Mumbai Indians, Suryakumar Yadav said that he quite enjoyed the face-off, adding that he was happy that the RCB skipper sledged him.
Indian batsman Suryakumar Yadav recently recalled an incident from Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 in which he was sledged by Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) skipper Virat Kohli. It was the 48th match of the IPL 2020 in which Kohli & Co posted 164/6 after batting first. In reply, MI had a slow start as they lost two wickets inside 8 overs. It was Suryakumar who took the onus and played a blistering knock of 79 runs off 43 deliveries.
There was a moment when Kohli went close to Suryakumar and stared at him continuously, probably with an aim to unsettle the latter who was toying with the RCB bowlers. But the tactic didn’t work as the MI No. 3 single-handedly took the team home. Kohli & Co had lost the game by 5 wickets.
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While speaking in a recent Instagram live session with Mumbai Indians, the batsman said that he quite enjoyed the face-off, adding that he was happy that the RCB skipper sledged him.
“It's not just me, he goes hard at any batsman batting against him. I was happy that he sledged me. It means even Kohli knew that if I bat on, we will win the match and if they got my wicket, then maybe they could slow us down and create a chance to win,” Suryakumar said.
“I am a cool and calm customer on the pitch, so I don't get into these rivalries. But there was that moment in Abu Dhabi, so I guess that can go down as one,” he added.
This incident took place days after the Indian squad for the Australian tour was announced and Suryakumar wasn’t included.
Months later, Suryakumar finally received the call-up for the limited-overs series against England earlier this year. He made his debut in the 2nd T20I and scored a half-century – 57 off 31 balls – in his maiden innings, in the 4th match of the series.
