You never feel that he is worried about his place in the team – Aakash Chopra on Suryakumar Yadav

Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra reckons Suryakumar Yadav always bats freely and it feels he is never worried about his place in the team. SKY, as he is renownedly known, has been hitting the ground running as soon as he gets to the crease.

The right-hander plays with an aggressive style and he mostly strikes at more than 170. In fact, Suryakumar Yadav had played as an opener in the West Indies T20Is but it should be noted that the fielding restrictions doesn’t seem to have an impact on his batting.

Yadav likes to play with the field and he knows where are the gaps in the field. The 31-year-old is known as a 360-degree batter as he can play all around the ground. Thus, he is a nightmare for the opposition bowlers and captain as it is difficult to set the right field for him.

Yadav has been in fine form in the recent past as he had scored a magnum opus knock of 117 runs off just 55 balls in the third T20I against England. The right-hander from Mumbai also scored a brilliant knock of 76 runs off just 43 balls in the third T20I against the West Indies.

In fact, Yadav had made his debut at the age of 30 years when he got his maiden chance against England in 2021.

Aakash Chopra said while talking on his YouTube Channel, “Suryakumar Yadav is phenomenal. When you get an opportunity very late, you don’t want to let it go. But in Surya’s batting, you never feel that he is worried about his place in the team. That’s the thing that separates him from the rest.”

“You made him open now, which I feel is not correct, but he scored runs there as well. You moved him up and down the order but he didn’t let the strike rate go down. Confidence – I think that’s what defines him.”

Yadav has made a dream start to his T20I career as he has mustered 672 runs at an average of 37.33 and a blistering strike rate of 175.45 in the 23 matches.

The renowned commentator hailed Yadav as the most versatile batter in the Indian team as he can score all around the ground and can bat at any position.

“At the moment, he is the most versatile batter in the Indian team. You talk about the amazing De Villiers, who used to play shots all around the park, the 360-degree player, Suryakumar Yadav has become that 360-degree player.”

“The pick-up shot has been his strength right from the start, you could have put a fielder in the deep for that earlier, but not now. The way he hit Alzarri Joseph straight down the ground, then he hits over covers as well, has the pick-up shot now also and he even plays the ramp shot over the keeper.”

Suryakumar Yadav will be seen in action in the Asia Cup 2022.