Suryakumar Yadav has been ruling the charts in T20 cricket in 2022. After an array of breathtaking performances which includes the ones he put up in the T20 World Cup earlier this year, Suryakumar now stands atop in the T20I rankings, going past Pakistan's Mohammad Rizwan. After conquering the shortest format, Suryakumar now looks to cement his place in the ODI side for the 2023 World Cup. And while India legend and former head coach Ravi Shastri did not speak about Suryakumar's place in the World Cup squad he was in complete awe of his show in the 2nd ODI.
The second game of the three-match ODI series in Hamilton was called off on Sunday after just 12.5 overs of cricket. The first spell of rain reduced the match to 29 overs an innings before the second spell urged the umpires to call off the game. In those 12.5 overs of action, Suryakumar faced 25 balls scoring 34 runs which left Shastri amazed.
Speaking to Prime Video after the match, Shastri hailed the India star as one of the best batters in the world and compared him with South Africa batting legend AB de Villiers.
“He is one of the best players in the world if not the best T20 player. He has got the all-round game and he is devastating. On his day, if he bats 30-40 balls, he’ll win you the match because he scores at that pace and he demoralizes the opposition with the kind of shots he plays. He is much like AB de Villiers at his best. When AB played one of those special innings, it deflated the opposition and Surya can do just that.”
{{/usCountry}}“He is one of the best players in the world if not the best T20 player. He has got the all-round game and he is devastating. On his day, if he bats 30-40 balls, he’ll win you the match because he scores at that pace and he demoralizes the opposition with the kind of shots he plays. He is much like AB de Villiers at his best. When AB played one of those special innings, it deflated the opposition and Surya can do just that.”
{{/usCountry}}When asked about Suryakumar's low return with the bat in the first ODI where India had lost, Shastri remained unfazed as he said, "If you look at the numbers and law of averages, he is bound to have an innings like that. But if he gets past the 15-20-run mark, he makes it count as he showed in some of his earlier innings. So, he backs his ability and attacking instincts. So when you have those kinds of instincts, every odd inning, he is bound to fail. But when it comes off, it’s spectacular.”