Indian batter Suryakumar Yadav lauded Venkatesh Iyer after the home team beat the West Indies by six wickets in the first T20I at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on February 16 to take a 1-0 lead in the ongoing three-match T20I series.
Chasing the target of 158 for victory in the first T20I, everything was going well for Team India until Rohit Sharma’s (40) wicket fell, as Virat Kohli (17) and Rishabh Pant (8) fell cheaply after the fall of the skipper’s wicket, with the hosts' score reading 114/4 against the West Indies.
Later, Suryakumar (34*) and Venkatesh (24*) took charge of the side, adding an unbeaten 48-run stand for the fourth wicket to seal a 6-wicket win with seven balls to spare in the first T20I against the West Indies.
After the match, Suryakumar hailed Venkatesh’s positive intent while chasing the target, saying his positive energy rubbed off on him during the successful chase against West Indies.
Suryakumar said during a virtual press conference: “I think when Venkatesh Iyer came into bat, the way he came to bat, his positivity was completely different, that passed onto me. He started his innings with a boundary; I felt it was the perfect platform for both of us to finish the game.”
On his own innings, the right-hander said: “I think it was very important for me to stay till the end and win the game for my side. I have been in these situations many times, I used to get out earlier, and then I used to feel bad. I think the situation was perfect and I just needed to raise my hand and bail the side out. It happened, very happy to be on the winning side.”
On being asked about Rohit Sharma's positive approach to batting, he said: “The entire world is watching how he is a class player. He has played for many years for India, he is just batting in the same manner he always has. When he bats in the powerplay, if his timing is right then he tries to accumulate as many runs as he can in the first six overs.”
Earlier, Nicholas Pooran played a brilliant knock of 61 runs to help West Indies post 157/7 in the first T20I, while Ravi Bishnoi had a memorable debut for India, taking two wickets while conceding just 17 runs in his quota of four overs at Eden Gardens. Harshal Patel also snared 2 wickets in the match.
Praising Bishnoi, Suryakumar said, “It was a good opportunity for Bishnoi to be playing against one of the best teams in T20I cricket, he responded really well, the way he bowled and backed himself, there was dew and it was not easy for spinners to grip the ball.”
He signed off by saying, “He executed everything really well, when he was under pressure, he came back with his best ball. I think it was a perfect debut for Ravi Bishnoi and I am very happy for him.”
(With ANI Inputs)
