"I won’t say I got irritated" - Suryakumar Yadav on not being called up to the national team in the past
Team India batter Suryakumar Yadav shed light on the time he struggled to get into the Indian squad. The Mumbai-born player was prolific on the domestic circuit and in the Indian Premier League (IPL) for several years but had to wait a significant while to make his national team debut.
Suryakumar received his maiden national call-up ahead of the home series against England in 2021.
Prior to that, he was in heavy contention to make it to the squad for Australia but was snubbed by the selectors, a move which was widely criticized.
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He ultimately made his debut in the T20I series against the visiting England side at the age of 30 and has not turned back since.
Stating that he was not irritated over the constant selection snubs over time, Suryakumar said in an interview with PTI:
"I won’t say I got irritated but I would always think how I could be different to move to the next level. So hard work continued and you need to enjoy the game also."
He continued:
"That’s why you started playing cricket. Whether it’s a simple training session or even the food that was healthy but I didn’t enjoy earlier, I started to savour it. I knew that if I stop thinking about outcomes and just focus on process, I would someday break the door."
Suryakumar initially came into the spotlight as a lower-middle order batter for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). A position in the top order with the Mumbai Indians (MI) turned his career around as he was able to make the most of the opportunity.
"If you have gone through domestic grind in India, you are ready for international cricket" - Suryakumar Yadav
Suryakumar was among the breed of cricketers who had tons of domestic experience under their belt before making the transition to the international level.
The years of grinding had their benefits as it made the switch easier, unlike the workload management era where players with limited experience are called up and find themselves struggling at the highest level.
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Noting how the domestic cricket experience aided him whilst making the transition, Suryakumar said:
"Grinding it out at first-class level, you learn a lot of tricks of the trade. So when you graduate to international level and play different bowlers, all you need to do is express yourself."
He continued:
"But let me tell you this. If you have gone through domestic grind in India, you are ready for international cricket and when you start that level, you are not carrying any baggage. Just execute what you did at the domestic level."
It remains to be seen if the Mumbai-born batter will feature in the Test series against Australia.
Also Read: "It still feels like a dream" - Suryakumar Yadav on being the No.1-ranked T20I batter