Suryakumar Yadav equals Virat Kohli with record 16th T20I Player Of The Match award in 56 fewer games
India's T20I skipper Suryakumar Yadav continued breaking records by equalling Virat Kohli for the Player of the Match Awards in T20Is. The 33-year-old won his 16th Player of the Match award in the series opener against Sri Lanka in Pallekele on July 27.
However, the impressive number of this landmark is the speed at which Surya achieved the same. While Kohli won his 16th Player of the Match award in his 125th T20I outing, the current skipper matched him in only his 69th T20I.
The swashbuckling batter tore into the Lankan attack, scoring 58 off only 26 deliveries with eight boundaries and two maximums. His knock propelled India to a massive 213/7 in 20 overs.
Despite a brief scare, the T20 World Champions easily defended the score and won by 43 runs to take a 1-0 series lead. Behind Surya and Kohli on the list is Sikandar Raza with 15 T20I Player of the Match honors and Mohammad Nabi, Rohit Sharma, and Virandeep Singh with 14.
It was Yadav's 24th 50+ T20I score in 66 innings, improving his average to an incredible 43.60 at a strike rate of 168.75.
"We were fortunate that there was no dew" - Suryakumar Yadav
While Suryakumar Yadav flexed his muscles with the willow in the first innings, his captaincy was tested during the Sri Lankan run chase. In his first game as India's permanent T20I captain, he admitted the lack of dew helped them eventually win comfortably.
The home team had a massive chance of an upset when they were 140/1 after 14 overs, needing only 74 off 36 deliveries. However, the Indian bowlers tightened the screws and picked up the final nine wickets for only 30 runs to pull away.
At the post-match presentation, a relieved captain said:
"They were playing a good brand of cricket from ball one. They were keeping the tempo, credit goes to them. We know how the wicket plays in the night. We were fortunate that there was no dew. The way we played in the World Cup, that reminded us that the game was still too far."
The game was also Gautam Gambhir's debut as Team India head coach and the tenure started on a winning note.
They will be back in action with a quick turnaround to seal the three-match series at the same venue on Sunday, July 28.