"You never feel that he is worried about his place in the team" - Aakash Chopra on Suryakumar Yadav
Aakash Chopra has lauded Suryakumar Yadav for not playing for his place in the side despite getting an opportunity to represent Team India slightly later in his career.
Yadav made his national team debut at the age of 30 in the T20I series against England last year. The Mumbai Indians batting mainstay has not looked back ever since and has become one of the most reliable batters for the Men in Blue in the shortest version of the game.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra was all praise for Yadav's selfless attitude on the cricket field, explaining:
"Suryakumar Yadav is phenomenal. When you get an opportunity very late, you don't want to let it go. But in Surya's batting, you never feel that he is worried about his place in the team. That's the thing that separates him from the rest."
Chopra picked Yadav's confidence as his best virtue. The former Indian opener elaborated:
"You made him open now, which I feel is not correct, but he scored runs there as well. You moved him up and down the order but he didn't let the strike rate go down. Confidence - I think that's what defines him."
Yadav has amassed 672 runs at an excellent average of 37.33 along with an outstanding strike rate of 175.45 in the 23 T20Is he has played thus far. The Mumbaikar has a strike rate of more than 150 in all the positions he has batted for Team India.
"He is the most versatile batter in the Indian team" - Aakash Chopra on Suryakumar Yadav
Aakash Chopra placed Yadav on a high pedestal, saying:
"At the moment, he is the most versatile batter in the Indian team. You talk about the amazing De Villiers, who used to play shots all around the park, the 360-degree player, Suryakumar Yadav has become that 360-degree player."
Chopra highlighted that the 31-year-old has added a plethora of shots to his repertoire. The reputed commentator observed:
"The pick-up shot has been his strength right from the start, you could have put a fielder in the deep for that earlier, but not now. The way he hit Alzarri Joseph straight down the ground, then he hits over covers as well, has the pick-up shot now also and he even plays the ramp shot over the keeper."
The RISE of SuryaKumar Yadav. An unknown average batsman till IPL 2017, Brought by Mumbai Indians as told by Rohit Sharma. Made him bat in Top 3 and after 4 years, he is probably the BEST T20i batsman in the world. Huge credit to MI management and Rohit for giving this GOLD to 🇮🇳 https://t.co/aQjskvUvZM
Chopra concluded by stating that Yadav's career progression is inspirational. He added that the unconventional batter has shown that if one has the belief, sooner or later luck takes a turn for the good.