"He's someone who can definitely walk into the T20 World Cup squad" - VVS Laxman on Suryakumar Yadav
VVS Laxman believes Suryakumar Yadav can be an integral member of India's squad for the T20 World Cup, which will be played later in the year.
Suryakumar Yadav is part of the 20-member Indian squad that will be playing six limited-overs matches against Sri Lanka from July 13. The swashbuckling batsman will hope to cement his place in the Indian line-up through his performances on the Lankan tour.
During a discussion on Star Sports, VVS Laxman expressed hope about Suryakumar Yadav getting to play in all six encounters on the tour of Sri Lanka. He reasoned that the 30-year-old would be a front-runner for a spot in the Indian team for the T20 World Cup. Laxman said:
"This is a great opportunity. I just want him [Yadav] to play all the 6 matches, 3 ODIs and 3 T20Is because he is someone who can definitely walk into the T20 World Cup squad, as far as I am concerned."
The former India batsman wants Suryakumar Yadav to gain as much international exposure as possible on this trip. Laxman added:
"So I just want him to go and gain the confidence of scoring runs even at the international level."
With prominent Indian batsmen like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul away in England, Suryakumar Yadav should get the chance to showcase his prowess in all six matches against Sri Lanka.
"I was really excited the way Suryakumar Yadav batted at no.3" - VVS Laxman
While lauding the performances of both Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan in their debut series against England earlier this year, VVS Laxman spoke in glowing terms about the former's batsmanship:
"Both of them [Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan] capitalized those opportunities. I was really excited the way Suryakumar Yadav batted at No.3."
The 46-year-old was particularly appreciative of the pulled six Suryakumar Yadav hit off the bowling of Jofra Archer to get off the mark in international cricket. Laxman elaborated:
"The kind of freedom, the first scoring shot in international cricket and that too against a quality fast bowler like Jofra Archer, to hit him for a six over fine-leg shows the kind of confidence and the skill and the talent he possesses."
Suryakumar Yadav scored 89 runs in the two knocks he played in his debut T20I series. His runs came at an exceptional strike rate of 185.41 and included a half-century.