'This is a fantastic achievement for any player': Ex-Indian pacer lauds Suryakumar Yadav

Former India cricketer Ashish Nehra has heaped praise on Suryakumar Yadav after the latter won the ICC T20I Cricket of the Year award. Nehra said that he wants Suryakumar to show his form across formats, adding that he certainly has the capability. The Gujarat Titans coach went on to state that if Suryakumar continues to perform at the international level, he will naturally form a place for himself in the ODI XI. 

“Let’s hope that he shows this form across formats because he certainly has the capability. He has played a few one-day games, but if he continues to perform at the level he is, it will naturally form a place for him in the XI. So if players are pushed to their limit with such performances, either they have to raise the bar or Suryakumar is always there to take place,” Nehra said.

“It is not surprising at all. This is such a Surya (Sun) that has shone consistently if you talk about the past year or two. Hopefully, he can carry this on because the kind of consistency that he has shown at such a high strike rate has been sensational. His confidence is at an all-time high and this is a fantastic achievement for any player because of how competitive T20 cricket is and yet Suryakumar has left behind so many big hitters in the game,” he added.

Suryakumar Yadav in 2022

Suryakumar played the best International season by any player in the shortest format as he made 1164 runs in 31 matches at an average of 46.56. The new Mr. 360 also maintained an explosive strike rate of 187.43 during the season, which is also the highest for any player from ICC full member nations. The right-handed batsman ended the year as the highest run-getter in the format and also achieved the highest T20I ranking of all time by achieving 890 rating points.   

Suryakumar scored nine half-centuries and 2 centuries last season. Suryakumar also played an important role at number 4 in the Rohit Sharma-led Team India's T20 World Cup campaign, where he finished as the second-highest run-scorer of the tournament after compatriot Virat Kohli. He scored three half-centuries in the six innings that he played in the T20 World Cup 2022 at a staggering strike rate of 189.68. 

Image: Twitter/BCCI