[Watch] Suryakumar Yadav shares his experience of playing at the Wankhede over the years
Suryakumar Yadav is widely acknowledged as the world's best T20 batsman and was instrumental in the Mumbai Indians' title runs in 2019 and 2020. He also starred for Team India in the T20 World Cup last year, which made him the No. 1 ranked T20I batsman in the world.
SKY boasts incredible numbers in the format, averaging 46.52 at a strike rate of 175.76 with three centuries to his name in 48 T20Is.
Five-time IPL champions Mumbai Indians had a season to forget last year, finishing bottom of the points table with only four wins from 14 matches. While they missed the services of Jofra Archer for the entire season and Suryakumar for nearly half of the season, the expectations were still sky-high for Mumbai, given the team's history and the star-studded lineup they still possessed.
The disappointing form of captain Rohit Sharma and middle-order match-winner Kieron Pollard was pivotal in Mumbai's lackluster batting display last year. The side will now look to Suryakumar to get them back to winning ways.
MI began this year's IPL on a similarly disappointing note as they were soundly beaten in their opening game by the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) with eight wickets and 3.4 overs to spare in Bangalore. Considering the disappointment of last season's IPL and given their otherwise proud history, the Mumbai Indians will look to open their account this season on their home turf at the Wankhede Stadium against arch-rivals Chennai Super Kings on Saturday.
Ahead of the side's first game at home this season, Suryakumar spoke about his experience playing at the Wankhede Stadium in a video shared by the Mumbai Indians' social media handles.
"The first year, when I returned in 2018, it felt like when you go home and open the door and you're greeted by everyone," Surya said.
Watch the video below:
"2018 ๐ฎ๐ฆ๐ช๐ฏ ๐ซ๐ข๐ฃ ๐ฎ๐ข๐ช๐ฏ ๐ท๐ข๐ข๐ฑ๐ข๐ด ๐ข๐ข๐บ๐ข๐ข ๐ต๐ฐ๐ฉ ๐ข๐ช๐ด๐ข ๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ข ๐จ๐ฉ๐ข๐ณ ๐ข๐ข ๐จ๐ข๐บ๐ฆ" ๐๏ธ
เคธเฅเคฐเฅเคฏเคพ เคฆเคพเคฆเคพ shares his experience of playing at the Wankhede over the years ๐๏ธ๐
#OneFamily #MumbaiMeriJaan #MumbaiIndians #TATAIPL #IPL2023 #MIvCSK @surya_14kumar MI TV https://t.co/NcRpLi7dr9
It is worth mentioning that SKY has represented Mumbai in domestic cricket for over a decade and was part of the Mumbai Indians' setup for the 2012 season. He then played for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) from 2014 to 2017 before returning to the Mumbai Indians in 2018.
In his second stint with the Mumbai franchise, SKY has been among the key members with the bat, consistently scoring above 400 runs in most of the full seasons he has played.
"We have no concerns about Surya's form." - MI batting coach Kieron Pollard hits back at critics.
Kieron Pollard was part of the Mumbai Indians setup for over a decade and played a massive role in the side's five IPL titles between 2013 and 2020. He hit back at the critics of SKY's form and expressed said there was nothing to be concerned about.
On the eve of the clash against the Chennai Super Kings, Pollard said:
โI believe all batters have to fire. I do not think we should not single out any individual. We have no concerns on Suryaโs form, again. I believe you guys make more of it than we do sometimes within the team setup."
"People have bad days and that is unfortunate as cricketers our bad days are highlighted and we keep speaking on and on about it rather than trying to look at the positive or what he has done over the past 18 months or so in cricket as an individual.โ
Surya endured a dreadful ODI series against Australia ahead of IPL 2023, recording three consecutive golden ducks, and scored only 15 runs in the opening game against RCB. Mumbai Indians will hope that the destructive right-hander returns to his best in the marquee clash against CSK.
Mumbai Indians take on the Chennai Super Kings at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Saturday (April 8).