The Mumbai-based batsman Suryakumar Yadav proved his mettle while playing for Mumbai Indians in the last two editions of the Indian Premier League (IPL) along with some great outings in the international arena was picked in India's squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2021 in UAE.
Yadav’s consistency with which he played in the IPL as he has 512, 424 and 480 in last three tournaments has impressed the former India batsman Gautam Gambhir and hence the southpaw rated him very highly.
“He can lap you, he can late cut you, he can hit you over extra cover; he's got all the shots, especially at No.4, because sometimes No.4 is the most tricky position to bat in T20 cricket, probably the easiest is the top three, but No.4, because you might be in when you have lost two early wickets and you still want to continue the momentum,” Gambhir said in a recent interaction on Star Sports.
“Sometimes you come into the middle, when you have got what... 130 for 2, and you have got to continue with the momentum. So, Surya's got both kinds of change, which probably Shreyas Iyer doesn't have,” the former cricketer added.
ENG v IND 2021: "Kohli to meet Ronaldo in Manchester?", Shubman Gill, RCB create hype on Twitter
Shreyas Iyer, another right-hand batsman who has been a mainstay in the Indian team in white-ball cricket, was out of the side since March after suffering a shoulder injury during the home series against England.
The former India ODI captain addressed this factor when he talked about Iyer not getting picked in the squad for the marquee event rather being named in the standby list.
“And again, you have to be mindful that he is coming after a serious injury and you never know what kind of a form he would be in the second leg of IPL as well. So, they've gone with someone, who has done really well, since he has gone into international cricket,” the 39-year-old concluded.
As far as the Indian team is concerned, they will begin their T20 World Cup campaign with a match against arch-rivals Pakistan on 24 October at Dubai.
(With Star Sports Inputs)
