"You will want him to do well"- Ravichandran Ashwin backs Suryakumar Yadav's Asia Cup inclusion with unique 'Mumbai Indians' example
Veteran off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin has backed India's decision to stick to Suryakumar Yadav in the ODI format despite the latter's inconsistency.
In 26 ODIs, SKY averages just a tad above 24. He has received a lot of flak on social media for being favored by the team management after his inclusion in the Asia Cup squad.
However, Ashwin explained what Suryakumar brings to the table in the form of his explosive ability and match-winning mindset as seen in T20Is. He feels most of the scrutiny received by SKY is because of IPL fan wars.
In a video on his YouTube channel, here's what Ravichandran Ashwin had to say about Suryakumar Yadav's inclusion through an interesting Mumbai Indians reference:
"Imagine Surya batting alongside Virat Kohli and India needing 140 from 20 overs. Even if you aren't a Mumbai Indians supporter, you will want him to do well right? He has the X factor and the selectors know what they are doing."
He added:
"Surya is our match-winner in the T20 format. But when it comes to ODIs, some say 'average player', 'how many chances?'. It all goes down to IPL warfare. He should be looked at as an Indian player and fans need to have that acceptance."
Ashwin further gave examples of India's previous tournament wins under MS Dhoni, saying:
"The team is backing Surya to come good in ODIs because of his X-factor. When you look at how teams have won World Cups, MS Dhoni or any other captain have backed the players that they believe will come good. It shouldn't be quantified into the number of chances given."
Ravichandran Ashwin on Tilak Varma's inclusion
Quite a few eyebrows were raised when Tilak Varma was named in India's Asia Cup squad despite the youngster not having played a single ODI game.
However, Ravichandran Ashwin tried to make sense of the move and explained what Tilak brought in as an option, saying:
"Surya and Tilak bring X-factor as backup middle-order batters. Tilak hasn't scored much in the Ireland series so far. But he has shown some unreal intent from the first ball. He brings clarity and freshness to that side and they have backed him."
If Shreyas Iyer and KL Rahul are rotated during the Asia Cup, it will be interesting to see how Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma perform in the chances they get.