Former Indian cricketer-turned-politician and commentator, Gautam Gambhir, has hailed the world’s number one T20I batter, Suryakumar Yadav. He also felt it was unfair to call Suryakumar a "360-degree" player, as he is a much more talented batter.
The former opener said that Suryakumar might not have the best cover drive, but he is the most valuable batter for Team India in the T20Is than any other batter, without mentioning Kohli.
Everybody knows that Kohli’s cover driver is the best in the world presently, and Gambhir was often critical of the hype around the former Indian skipper, so it would be no wonder whom he was targeting.
Gautam Gambhir said on Star Sports: “Let's not give him names like 360, there's a lot of work to do. He's got loads of talent. Whether it is 360, 180 or 1 degree, it doesn't matter. He has the game. He knows what he's doing.
When a traditional coach sees him he can say, 'he's got an open stance, he doesn't get behind the line' but he has been successful with what he has got. He has scored runs in first-class cricket and in every format. Hopefully, he gets a chance in Test cricket and he'll do well.”
Gambhir took a subtle dig at Virat Kohli without naming him and said that though Suryakumar Yadav doesn't have an eye-catching cover drive, his strike-rate makes him more valuable than other batters.
Gambhir concluded, “Suryakumar might not have the best cover drive like the others (Indian batters) but he has that 180-strike rate which is much more valuable than that of the other Indian batters.”
