Suryakumar Yadav might have scored a quick fifty while opening in the third T20I against the West Indies, but still the former national selector, Saba Karim, doesn’t think he is an ideal opening choice for India.
Opening alongside Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar failed to get going in the first two T20Is, but he hammered a stunning knock of 76 runs off 44 balls, as well as added 86 runs with Shreyas Iyer (24) to help Team India beat West Indies by 7 wickets in the third T20I on August 2.
However, the former selector believes that the right-hander is best suited at the No.4 batting position and believes that the team should shift him back to that position, with the upcoming T20 World Cup 2022 in mind, where the Men in Blue will require a player like Surya.
Saba Karim told India News: “I still think that he is best suited at No.4, especially against a top-quality bowling attack. No.4 is a very important batting position in ICC events, you need a player like Suryakumar there. He is equally proficient against pacers and spinners and scores at a healthy strike rate.”
Meanwhile, former India cricketer Reetinder Sodhi also lauded Suryakumar and agreed with Karim’s thoughts while explaining why he is the ideal pick for the middle order.
Sodhi said, “He is an exceptional player, he has proven himself at the International level. He is brilliant in the middle-order, he knows how to run the game, and he knows how to rotate the strike as well as score boundaries at regular intervals. He will keep the scoreboard ticking.”
