"We prayed for the speedy recovery of Rishabh Pant. His comeback is very important to us" - Suryakumar Yadav
Suryakumar Yadav, along with a few select members of the Indian team, paid a visit to the Mahakaleshwar temple in Ujjain ahead of the third ODI between India and New Zealand on Tuesday, January 24.
The Team India batter shed light on the purpose of the visit there, claiming that he prayed for Rishabh Pant's speedy recovery. The wicketkeeper-batter is currently out of action due to injuries he sustained in a car accident on December 30.
The youngster is recovering in Mumbai under the Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) medical team after being airlifted from Dehradun following the initial course of treatment. He has sustained pretty heavy damage to his knee ligaments in particular, which rules him out of action for the foreseeable future.
Madhya Pradesh | Indian cricketers Suryakumar Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav, and Washington Sundar visited Mahakaleshwar temple in Ujjain and performed Baba Mahakal's Bhasma Aarti. https://t.co/nnyFRLMbfa
Suryakumar, who performed Baba Mahakal's Bhasma Aarti with his teammates, told ANI:
"We prayed for the speedy recovery of Rishabh Pant. His comeback is very important to us. We have already won the series against New Zealand, looking forward to the final match against them."
We prayed for the speedy recovery of Rishabh Pant. His comeback is very important to us. We have already won the series against New Zealand, looking forward to the final match against them: Cricketer Suryakumar Yadav https://t.co/2yngbYZXfb
Select Team India members also paid a visit to the Padmanabhaswamy Temple ahead of the third ODI against Sri Lanka at the Greenfield Stadium in Thiruvananthapura earlier this month.
Suryakumar was also present during that visit along with the likes of Shreyas Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, and Washington Sundar.
Suryakumar Yadav will look to find his ODI groove in the third ODI against New Zealand
Changes could be in the offing for Team India for the third and final ODI after already claiming an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match affair. However, with KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer both absent, Suryakumar Yadav is likely to retain his place in the middle order to find his tempo in the 50-over format.
The Mumbai-born player has looked in good touch but has not been able to translate his T20I form onto the ODI circuit. He has had a hard time adapting to the process that involves building an ODI innings and spending some quality time at the crease.
He has faced over 50 deliveries in ODI cricket only once in his career. His stint at the crease over the course of the last 11 innings has come to an end before 30 balls.
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