“Was wondering what was happening, color of the ball is the same” - Suryakumar Yadav reflects on horrendous ODI run
Team India batter Suryakumar Yadav has admitted that he was a bit perplexed over his inability to crack the ODI quote despite his sensational run in T20I cricket. He admitted that he thought hard about what he was doing wrong and concluded he was hurrying up things a bit in the ODI format.
Under pressure to prove his worth in the ODI squad after a string of low scores, Suryakumar finally delivered in the first one-dayer against Australia in Mohali on Friday, September 22. The right-handed batter scored 50 off 49 balls, his first half-century in the format since February 2022 and only the third of the ODI career.
Suryakumar added 80 runs for the fifth wicket skipper KL Rahul (58* off 63), a crucial partnership in the context of the match after India slipped from 142/0 to 185/4 in a chase of 277. A standout feature of Suryakumar’s knock was his straight drives and not attempting the sweep shot that has brought him runs, but has also resulted in a number of his dismissals in the ODI format.
Speaking after India’s five-wicket win over Australia, Suryakumar shared his thoughts on his impressive innings and said:
“I was wondering what was happening. The color of the ball is the same. The teams are the same. The bowlers are the same. I think I was hurrying a bit. I thought, let's take a little more time, calm myself, take it slowly, and try to bat deep.”
The 33-year-old admitted that he made a conscious effort to keep out the sweep. Suryakumar stated:
“I think it’s the first time I haven’t played a sweep. This has come from the Chandu Pandit school of arts (on his straight drives). Really enjoyed watching the openers bat.”
The Indian middle-order batter struck five and a six in his mature knock, a number of the boundaries coming down the ground in uncharacteristic fashion.
“I am definitely loving my new role” - Suryakumar on being an ODI finisher
Batting at the pivotal No. 6 position in ODIs, Suryakumar is expected to play the role of finisher. He almost took the team home on Friday, perishing with India just a few runs away from victory.
While admitting that he would have loved to take the team home, the batter concluded:
“That was what I was dreaming of when I started playing this format - trying to bat till the end as much as possible and finish the game for the team. I couldn't do that today, but I am definitely loving my new role. Want to try and bat the same way, bat deep, try and win games for India.”
In 28 ODIs, Suryakumar has scored 587 runs at an average of 25.52 and a strike rate of 100.