Given the extra bounce, cold weather, the new ball swinging, and enormous ground dimensions, Australia is considered to be one of the most difficult places for batters to score runs. Add to that the pressure of the World Cup, all this can make players very nervous.
Then comes along Suryakumar Yadav, who, believe it or not, is playing in Australia for the first time and is striking at a rate of over 190 while accumulating 225 runs in five games at the ongoing T20 World Cup 2022, almost making a mockery of other batters.
There have been many exceptional batters from India over the years, but Suryakumar stands out as the most fearless, unconventional, and destructive of them all. He belongs to a rare breed of hitters who can not not only rack up big scores but also do so at an astonishingly high strike rate.
This year, the dashing right-hander has aggregated 1026 runs in 28 games at an impressive average of 44.61. He also replaced Pakistan’s Mohammad Rizwan to take the top spot in the ICC Rankings of T20I batters in the world.
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One among many who have been captivated by Yadav’s masterful batting is Australia legend Shane Watson who lauded the right-hander’s consistency.
"It is a really rare talent where his ability to really read a bowler, where he is going to bowl and where the fielders are, and his control over where the ball goes, it is a very rare talent. We have not really seen it much before," Watson was quoted as saying by ICC.
"To be able to do it so consistently, to be able to do it in one or two games, that can happen. But to be able to do it so consistently in the big games? He is a special talent and it does not look like anything is going to change. It looks like he is going to be out to continue to do this for a long time. It just looks low-risk, even though what he does is high-risk," he added.
Watson admitted that although the 32-year-old has put on brilliant performances in the IPL, how he has replicated that form in international cricket is something truly remarkable.
"It really is a treat to be able to watch SKY bat over the last two years watching him in the IPL and performing as well as he has. But then to be able to turn it on like he has in international cricket as well is something to behold. What he is able to do in these foreign conditions in Australia alone is something that not many people have ever been able to do in T20 cricket," said the former all-rounder.
The Men in Blue will now face England in the semi-final on Thursday (November 10) at the Adelaide Oval.
(ICC AND ANI INPUTS)
