Cricket News

‘It was the most challenging wicket’ – Suryakumar Yadav reveals the toughest pitch he batted on in his career

Suryakumar Yadav has taken international cricket by storm ever since his debut against England in March 2021. The star batter had a remarkable 2022 where he broke several records and rose to the number one position in the T20I batters rankings. It all changed for Suryakumar after his magnificent hundred against England in July at Trent Bridge. He further carried his great form to the 20-20 World Cup 2022 where he accumulated 239 runs in six innings.

SKY, as he’s popularly known by his fans, also completed 1000 runs in T20Is in the first match of the world cup in Melbourne against arch-rivals Pakistan. But his biggest challenge was batting at Perth.

Just 15 minutes ahead of the big game against South Africa, the 31-year-old got a hang of the pitch where India posted a target of 133/9 and that too after a lot of fight.

“I think that half-century against South Africa in Perth was the defining knock for me. It was the most challenging wicket I have faced till date. Before the game, I went to bat in the nets for 15 minutes and I got the feeling of Perth there itself,” told Indian Express.

SKY was the top scorer for India as he helped the ‘Men-in-Blue’ reach a respectable total. India were 49/5 at one stage and as he mentioned ‘we could have got all out for 75.’

“The practice pitches were quick. So I faced a mere 15 balls and told Vicky paaji (batting coach Vikram Rathod) that I am done for the day, whatever batting is to be done will be done in the match,” he added.

“When I went in to bat, I told myself ki yeh pitch toh sochne se bhi jyada tez hai (this pitch is quicker than I thought). So, when I went to the non-striker’s end, I kept thinking which shots I could play as there was bounce too. When we were 49 for 5, we had nothing to lose. We could have got all out for 75, but I decided to take the positive route,” he further said.

Suryakumar Yadav to play for Mumbai in Ranji Trophy

A new journey awaits SKY as he dons Mumbai whites for the upcoming Ranji Trophy match against Hyderabad. It was here in domestic cricket where he began his journey and made a mark for himself by toiling continuously before he was recognized internationally.

The Mumbai batter was recently rested for the ODI series against Bangladesh even as the seniors returned. Now, he will be available for Mumbai’s all-important Ranji Trophy campaign which begins under the leadership of Ajinkya Rahane.