ICC T20 World Cup 2021: Suryakumar Yadav: A unnoticed talent to India’s middle-order mainstay.
ICC T20 World Cup 2021: Suryakumar Yadav was late to arrive in the international cricket, but it is always said, “better late than never.” The 30-years old cricketer stepped into the T20Is for India earlier this year after year’s of a consistent toil in the domestic circuits and IPL success.
First Class Journey:
Yadav, an innovative batsman, made his first-class debut in 2010 against Delhi with an impressive 73 in a Ranji match. He topped the run-getters chart in the 2011-12 Ranji Trophy for Mumbai in his first full season.
His early promises of being a brilliant cricketer were followed by the double-century against Orissa in the same season and a century in the very next match in the 2011-12 Ranji Season.
Despite having remarkable performances and promising signs, Yadav saw a dip in his performance in the very next season as he managed to amass mere 73 runs in six first-class innings.
The Mumbai batsman didn’t let his bat keep quiet for long as he ended the poor show in the very next 2013-14 season. He remained in the top bracket of run-scorers and was in the top three for his team Mumbai.
Suryakumar Yadav IPL Journey:
Owing to his sensational chart-topping abilities, Yadav got an IPL contract with Mumbai Indians (MI) in 2011, however, got dropped off in the very next season. He played just one game in the 2012 IPL season and got dismissed on a duck.
The cricketer was now picked by Kolkata knight Riders (KKR) in 2014 forking out INR 70 Lakhs.
Suryakumar Yadav was handed the role of middle-order batsman for KKR, however, the cricketer didn’t seem like he was enjoying his outings.
Suryakumar Yadav Batting Stats from IPL 2014-2017:
| Year | Matches | Runs Scored | Average | Strike Rate |
| 2014 | 16 | 164 | 32.80 | 140.17 |
| 2015 | 13 | 157 | 17.44 | 138.93 |
| 2016 | 15 | 182 | 26.00 | 127.27 |
| 2017 | 10 | 105 | 17.50 | 119.31 |
Re-discovering Suryakumar Yadav:
It was the year 2018 when Yadav was once again dropped off from Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) squad before the auction and was picked by Mumbai Indians (MI) eventually.
The explosive batsman was given to role in Mumbai’s top order at number three and that is the time when he rediscovered himself.
Suryakumar Yadav played the whole 2018 IPL season for Mumbai Indians (MI) and was the top run-scorer for his team. He plundered massive 512 runs in 14 matches at an average of 36.57.
The 2018 season anchored Yadav’s IPL journey and since then he has been a mainstay of Mumbai Indians (MI) batting. He consistently scores hefty runs for his franchise.
Suryakumar’s IPL Batting Stats IPL 2018 Onwards:
| Year | Matches | Runs Scored | Average | Strike Rate |
| 2018 | 14 | 512 | 36.57 | 133.33 |
| 2019 | 16 | 424 | 32.61 | 130.86 |
| 2020 | 16 | 480 | 40.00 | 145.01 |
| 2021* | 7 | 173 | 24.71 | 144.16 |
Suryakumar Yadav getting unnoticed from Indian selectors:
Scoring hefty IPL runs are termed synonymous with getting India’s maiden T20I call-up, however, the statement didn’t apply to Yadav as he went unnoticed for the straight three seasons.
The 30-years old cricketer was constantly knocking on the selector’s doors for his maiden T20I call-up, however, Indian young talents overshadowed his brilliance for most of his career.
He didn’t lose his hopes with a couple of unnoticed calls and backing from his IPL franchise encouraged him to score more runs and perform consistently.
The Indian selectors overlooked Suryakumar Yadav and was not picked for any of the Australia and Sri Lanka tour despite having made his first-class debut a decade ago.
The cricketer opened up about his confidence and a pep talk from his IPL skipper Rohit Sharma that gave him comfort after one more overlooked attempt from selectors.
Yadav said, “That time in the gym Rohit was sitting beside me and he just looked at me, and I said, ‘obviously, I am a bit disappointed,’ because he could see that I was expecting some good news.”
“Later on he was like ‘I just believed you have been doing a great job for the team right now, and instead of thinking about that (non-selection), you just do the same things what you have been since day one in this IPL.
“… ‘and when the time is right, your opportunity will come, maybe today or tomorrow but it will come, you just got to believe in yourself,” Surya said.
Maiden T20I Call-up for Suryakumar Yadav:
By this time, Suryakumar Yadav’s selection discussions started taking rounds in social media and the experts began giving their opinions.
The Indian selectors finally for England’s home T20I series in 2021 gave Yadav a maiden chance to hammer his mark in the mettle.
But, this was not the end to Yadav’s dramatic career. Although he was handed his maiden T20I cap in the first T20I against England, Yadav didn’t get the opportunity to perform and was dropped from the playing 11 in the very next T20I game.
Yadav got his turn to perform in the fourth Test and started off his international journey in some style. His wait to wear India’s jersey and score runs ended as he smacked Jofra Archer to a six over the fine leg in the very first ball of his international career.
He went on to score a brilliant half-century in that match and was immediately named in India’s ODI squad against England.
The cricketer was also picked in India’s squad for the Sri Lanka tour.
He made his One Day debut in the first ODI between India and Sri Lanka and remained unbeaten on 31 off 20 deliveries. He amassed 53 and 40 in his next two ODI innings and was adjudged as the ‘Man of the Series’ in his maiden ODI series.
His consistent run didn’t end here as he scored another half-century in the first T20I match between India and Sri Lanka last night.
Here are his T20I and ODI squad until now:
| Mat | Inn | Run | Avg | SR | 50s | |
| ODIs | 3 | 3 | 124 | 62.00 | 122.77 | 1 |
| T20Is | 4 | 3 | 139 | 46.33 | 169.51 | 2 |
Although he turned his head in international cricket early in his 20s, he has arrived in some style. He has been consistent ever since he got his T20I and ODI caps.
In fact, he is one of the prominent contenders to feature in India’s T20I playing XI for the ICC T20 World Cup 2021. His recent figures can pip out the likes of Shreyas Iyer.
The cricketer has been recently named as one of the two replacements that will head to the UK for the five matches test series.
Yadav along with Prithvi Shaw will travel to England and join the Indian senior squad for the test series after three members were ruled out.
ALSO READ: IPL 2021 schedule, full match timetable, timings, venues, and technical changes.
