Suryakumar Yadav has taken the cricketing world by storm with his exploits in the shortest format of the game.
The dashing right-hander has played 53 T20Is so far, amassing 1841 runs at an average of 46.02 and a remarkable strike rate of 172.70, including three hundreds and 15 half-centuries. He also won the ICC Men’s T20I Player of the Year award for his brilliance in the shortest format last year.
However, Suryakumar has failed to make a mark in the 50-over format as of now. In 26 ODIs, he has scored 537 runs at an average of 24.41 with two fifties.
His latest failure came in the Asia Cup 2023 Super 4 match against Bangladesh. Having qualified for the final, India made wholesale changes to their playing XI and Surya got an opportunity to bat at No. 6 but he returned with a score of 26 in 34 balls.
After yet another failure, Suryakumar Yadav faced stern criticism from fans but former Australia opener Matthew Hayden extended his support to the reserve middle-order batter.
“I really understand the mindset. Because I sat for seven years without getting a game for Australia. You have these moments when you perform incredibly well for your state, and in Suryakumar Yadav's case, in first-class and IPL cricket, where his strike rate is 170+. When it comes to ODIs, he hasn't quite found, or decoded, what's his game going to be,” Hayden said on Star Sports.
Chasing 266 to win, India were struggling at 94/4 and needed Surya to bat till the end but he attempted a premeditated sweep shot and completely missed the line as Shakib Al Hasan cleaned him up.
“Tonight, he just played 'get out of the jail' shots, trying to get those lack of respect runs. Even when Jadeja came to play, he was going bang-bang-bang with Shubman Gill powering away. That takes a lot of confidence internally. You have to be right at the top of your game. When you are fighting so hard to find respect from your country in that one format, the harder you chase it, the farther it seems to get away. So, I do feel for Suryakumar Yadav, who I think has a huge role to play in this World Cup,” Hayden added.
Despite the poor numbers, the selectors have showed faith in Suryakumar Yadav and picked him in the 15-member squad for the 2023 World Cup, slated to get underway on October 5 in India.
