 "T20 World Cup: How Suryakumar Yadav took the Barbados pitch out of the equation with his unconventional batting style")
India have found a way to prosper in the ongoing T20 World Cup, whether in the United States or in the Caribbean. They had breezed through the group stage unbeaten after winning all three matches on a tricky wicket at New York’s Nassau County International Stadium, with their only fixture in Florida getting washed out.
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On Thursday, the Men in Blue appeared to have carried on from where they had left off in the US as they kickstarted their Super Eight campaign with a thumping 47-run victory over Afghanistan at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown, Barbados.
Much like their wins over Ireland and USA in their Group A fixtures, India managed to stamp their authority on the opposition, even if the Afghans managed to post the highest total against the Indian attack so far in the tournament. Jasprit Bumrah starred with the ball, again, registering outstanding figures of 4-1-7-3 as India maintained a stranglehold on the Afghans throughout their chase, bowling them out for 134 after setting a challenging 182 to win.
Read | 'Important for us to use him smartly', Rohit on Bumrah after India defeat Afghanistan
The match, however, could have turned out very different had it not been for one Suryakumar Yadav and his game-changing innings.
SKY takes the pitch out of the equation with his brilliance
The wicket at the Kensington Oval certainly appeared a lot better than what the Indian batters had to deal with in New York, leading both experts and fans to believe a big score was on the cards for the Men in Blue and that maybe Rohit and opening partner Virat Kohli would finally get the big partnership that they haven’t been able to produce so far.
A few overs into the match, after Rohit won the toss and opted to bat, it was apparent that the Bridgetown wicket wasn’t quite the batting paradise that the legendary Sunil Gavaskar had expected it to be during his pitch report. The ball wasn’t quite coming onto the bat as well as the batters would’ve liked, leading to Rohit perishing while trying to shift gears against left-arm pacer Fazalhaq Farooqi.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsPhotos | India begin Super 8s with clinical victory over Afghanistan in Barbados
Kohli finally hit his first six of the tournament but ended up departing for a run-a-ball 24, while Rishabh Pant’s stay at the crease was cut short after an explosive start as he was undone by Rashid Khan’s guile.
It wasn’t just the India top-three who struggled. Shivam Dube had been smashing the same set of spinners for fun during the three-match series in India in January but became the second left-handed batter trapped leg-before off Rashid’s bowling.
Additionally, none of the Afghan batters later in the day crossed 30, while only two Indian batters managed to do so — Suryakumar Yadav (SKY) and Hardik Pandya, the Mumbai Indians pair stitching what proved to be a match-winning fifth-wicket partnership.
An overall team effort! We keep marching on 💪🇮🇳 pic.twitter.com/R26M36oHuU
— Surya Kumar Yadav (@surya_14kumar) June 20, 2024
Surya rediscovered his form with an unbeaten half-century against the USA last week, helping the Men in Blue chase down a target of 111 after being reduced to 39/3 at one stage. It was a similar story in Barbados on Thursday, with the Indians losing their third wicket with 62 on the board at the time of Kohli becoming the second of Rashid’s three wickets. Once again, it was the 33-year-old pulling his team out of choppy waters with his unorthodox style of batting, taking the attack to the opposition at a time when they were riding high on confidence.
It all began with an expansive sweep of Rashid in the final delivery of his second over, just three balls after he had dismissed Kohli. He continued to ace the sweep against the premier leg-spinner in his following over as well, directing the ball towards fine leg for his second four before clearing the deep square leg fence with a clean strike.
The margins are wafer-thin when it comes to playing such shots against a world-class spinner like Rashid, and the slightest miscalculation could have resulted in SKY getting the marching orders earlier than expected. This, however, is a batter who appears to have regained his old ‘360-degree’ touch as well as his confidence, allowing him to treat the opposition’s best bowler with disdain.
Read | Top five moments from India's commanding victory over Afghanistan
Winning the mini-battle against Rashid, who had briefly allowed the Afghans to wrest control after the powerplay, proved to be a turning point for Surya as well as for Team India, and there was no looking back from there on.
The No. 4 batter saved his most outrageous shot of the day for the 13th over, in which he shuffled a long way to his right to play a wristy little flick off a low, wide full toss from Azmatullah Omarzai, sending it towards the vacant square leg fence for a four. He then smashed the seamer for a six straight down the ground in his second over, holding his pose for the photographers while doing so.
Surya later brought up his second consecutive half-century and his 19th overall in T20Is with a six and a four off Farooqi’s bowling in the 17th over, bringing up the milestone in just 27 balls. With more than three overs left in the innings, fans probably hoped for him to finish somewhere in the 80s or 90s, but SKY ended up getting foxed by a slower delivery from Farooqi much like his skipper earlier in the innings.
Despite not staying at the crease till the end, Surya left a lasting impact on the match as his knock proved to be the difference between the two sides. All-rounder Pandya was happy playing a supporting role for most of the 60-run partnership and only started accelerating once India had gone past the 120-mark. Axar Patel later provided the finishing touch with a cameo of 12 off 6 balls, helping India breach the 180-mark in the end.
“I enjoy batting from (7-15 overs) — that’s the most difficult phase where the opposition bowlers look to control things. I like to take charge in that phase; I enjoy it,” Surya said during the mid-innings break after helping India post a competitive total on the board.
“I think you just need to know your game plan and just play accordingly. I still remember when Hardik came in to bat, I told him, ‘let’s bat with the same intent. Let’s keep pressing the pedal and keep pushing.’ In the end, I’m very happy with a score of 180,” SKY said during the post-match presentation after being adjudged the Player of the Match.
Questions will continue to be asked of the Indian top-order, specifically the opening combination and how Rohit and Kohli’s inability to deliver a solid start could spell trouble for India later in the tournament.
However, the manner in which Surya has been batting in the last couple of games, even on wickets that are far from ideal for a batter and forging match-winning partnerships with his middle-order colleagues, certainly is a welcome development as the knockouts draw closer.
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