Suryakumar Yadav made an instant impact in international cricket with a 31-ball 57 in his first innings in the Twenty20 International against England. He backed it up with a 17-ball 32 in the second chance he got to bat in India colours. Having added another dimension to India’s batting with his daring strokeplay, the 30-year-old batsman will look to build on the initial success on the tour of Sri Lanka which starts with the ODIs on July 13. These are the last three T20Is before the T20 World Cup this year and another good showing should help him cement a berth in the India team.
The Mumbai Indians batting star’s success is based on the thriving under pressure. Addressing the media on Tuesday, he iterated his mantra of “no pressure, no fun”.
“I think that (debut series against England) was a completely different challenge and for a batter, every time you go in or play a different game, you start from scratch. So this (tour) also I have to start from zero but the challenge remains the same, I have to go out in the park and perform the same way; pressure will be there, because if there is no pressure, there is no fun. It will be a great challenge and I am really looking forward to it,” said Yadav.
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Flexibility is an added quality in Yadav. He can play the pivotal role at No 3 or be effective as a finisher. There are no instructions needed to play a specific role, he just adapts. Asked if he has been given the license to attack from the start, Yadav said: “I think I have been doing the same thing, what I did for my franchise back in the IPL. When I made my debut, the same happened, I did not do anything different. In whatever position they send me to bat, I will be the same, I just go out and express the same way on how I do in every game and I really enjoy (it).”
{{/usCountry}}Flexibility is an added quality in Yadav. He can play the pivotal role at No 3 or be effective as a finisher. There are no instructions needed to play a specific role, he just adapts. Asked if he has been given the license to attack from the start, Yadav said: “I think I have been doing the same thing, what I did for my franchise back in the IPL. When I made my debut, the same happened, I did not do anything different. In whatever position they send me to bat, I will be the same, I just go out and express the same way on how I do in every game and I really enjoy (it).”
{{/usCountry}}In international cricket, he is only three matches old, but season after IPL season of dealing with different conditions and pitches, has helped Yadav develop game awareness. In the first intra-squad T20 game played on Monday at Colombo’s SSC ground, Yadav made an unbeaten 50 batting for a Bhuvneshwar Kumar XI.
Talking about IPL’s influence, he said: “I think it (being with the Mumbai Indians) has been a great experience and great learning process. Since I have been in this set up for a long-time and every year I have learned something different and that tournament (IPL), I think, is a great learning. Every year I go year in that tournament, when I go home, I learn something new and it really helps me. It has helped me gain a lot of experience.”
‘Hardik bowling in nets’
Apart from winning the series in Sri Lanka, the tour is being seen as a preparation for October’s T20 World Cup. And a lot of attention will be on how Hardik Pandya the bowler shapes up in games. Team India is clear: Pandya the batsman has limited value but Pandya the all-rounder is indispensable across formats. Pandya himself is looking at the tour to return to full rhythm as a pace bowler.
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Yadav said that Pandya is bowling in the nets. “He (Hardik) did bowl in the England series. During the IPL, he did not bowl. The team management and Hardik, they know their responsibilities well so they are taking a call. He bowled in the intra-squad game and he bowled in the nets. So, it is his and the team management’s call on how they want to go about it, but yes, he is bowling. That’s a very good sign,” said Yadav.