Once again Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli failed to make it big in the game, it was India’s very own Mr. 360 Suryakumar Yadav who pulled the team out of the trouble. Suryakumar proved yet again why he is the No. 1 ranked T20I batter in the world as he scored a stunning half-century against Afghanistan in their first Super 8 match in the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024.
Suryakumar Yadav Equals Virat Kohli’s World Record In Half The Time
Suryakumar Yadav walked out to bat after Indian captain Rohit Sharma and keeper-batter Rishabh Pant had departed early. SKY formed a brilliant partnership with all-rounder Hardik Pandya and together they took the Indian cricket team to 181 runs in 20 overs.
Thanks to SKY’s knock, the Indian cricket team posted a target that was more than enough to defend as the Afghanistan batters never got close.
In the process, Suryakumar Yadav equaled Virat Kohli’s world record. Yes, SKY was awarded the Player of the Match for his brilliant knock. This was his 15th award in the T20I format. This record helped SKY match the world record of Virat Kohli. Both of them have now won 15 awards apiece.
However, the difference in both the records is of time. Surya achieved this feat faster than Kohli. SKY took just 61 innings to achieve this milestone, which is nearly half the innings of Virat Kohli. King took 113 innings to achieve this feat.
Most POTM awards in T20Is:
Suryakumar Yadav – 15 (61 innings)
Virat Kohli – 15 (113 innings)
Speaking to the broadcasters during the innings break, Suryakumar Yadav talked about his knock and said: “That’s what I have practiced, I enjoy batting from overs 7-15 because that’s the most difficult phase where the opposition bowlers look to control things. I like to take charge in that phase, I enjoy it.”
Following Rohit Sharma’s dismissal, Rishabh Pant and Virat Kohli added 43 runs for the second wicket to bring the momentum back for the Indian side before Rashid Khan‘s twin strikes left team India reeling at 62 runs for 3. Talking about the pressure after Kohli’s dismissal, Surya said:
“I started chewing my gum harder when he (Kohli) got out. I just backed my game and my instincts.”
He added: “I have played a lot of cricket with him (Rohit Sharma) and now under him, he understands my game. He knows my game, so he sits back and enjoys it.”
Meanwhile, in the ongoing tournament, Suryakumar Yadav has overshadowed Virat Kohli with his performances. SKY has amassed 112 runs at an average of just over 37, in four innings, on the other hand, Kohli has scored 29 runs from four innings at an average of just over seven.
Not just this, SKY is also the only Indian batter to go past the 50-run mark and he has managed to do it twice.
The Men in Blue will be playing their next match against Bangladesh on June 22.
