Indian batting sensation Suryakumar Yadav has been making waves in the cricketing world, with his outstanding performance in the shortest format of the game. His impressive run of form in 2022 saw him register three centuries in the space of six months, which earned him the ICC’s T20I Cricketer of the Year award.
While his impact in T20Is remains unparalleled, former Indian cricketer Suresh Raina believes that Suryakumar should be an integral part of India’s squad in all three formats of the game. Suryakumar has been one of the most watchable batters in the world ever since making his T20I debut in 2021. The batter has registered 1578 runs from 43 T20I innings, with 1164 runs coming in 2022, the most by any batter in 2022.
Suresh Raina, who himself has been an integral part of the Indian cricket team for several years, noted that Suryakumar’s jaw-dropping innovative batting style makes him an invaluable asset to the team in the shortest format. Raina went on to say that an Indian team without Suryakumar is not possible. “The way he is performing, I think he should play in all three formats and without him, all three formats should not even exist. The way he performed, the way he shows intent, the way he plans different shots, he also plays fearlessly and knows how to use the dimension of the ground,” he said during an interaction with Aakash Chopra on Viacom18 Sports.
Suryakumar’s performances have seen him climb up to the top of the ICC rankings for batters in T20Is, but he has failed to replicate the same form in the longer formats of the game. He did not have the desired effect for India in the recently concluded ODI series against New Zealand. However, Suresh Raina believes that Suryakumar has the potential to excel in the traditional format of the game as well. He stated that since Suryakumar is a Mumbai player, he knows how to play red-ball cricket. Raina went on to say, “I think he has a great chance – playing Test cricket will get him another establishment in ODIs and some stability as well. He will score multiple 100s and then 200s.”
Suryakumar’s performances have earned him a maiden Test call-up for India’s opening two matches of the much-anticipated Test series against Australia, commencing in February. This is a significant opportunity for Suryakumar to showcase his talents in the traditional format of the game and prove his worth as a player who can excel in all three formats of the game.
