IPL 2023: Superb Suryakumar Yadav wins hearts again, Suresh Raina praises MI star following Mohali onslaught

There is no better sight in T20 cricket than watching in-form Suryakumar Yadav go full throttle against any attack. Something similar happened in Mohali on Wednesday night when SKY, as his fans often call him, unleashed himself and helped his team chase a daunting 215 well inside 20 overs. Mr IPL, Suresh Raina, who had also won many matches for his franchise, praised Surya for his approach in big chases.

Speaking to Jio Cinema after the match, Raina said Surya’s self-confidence helped him score big against Punjab. He added the way the right-handed Surya is batting, it doesn’t look like he will make a mistake, as he knows where the bowler is about to bowl. Raina further said that no one reads the ground dimensions better than SKY, at least in this format.

“He knows where the bowler is going to bowl. The way he stole the game, we can see that Suryakumar Yadav is full of self-confidence. He plays with intent, and for 200 runs, your brain should focus on game awareness more than intent. He reads the dimensions the best,” Raina said.

Following an emphatic chase at home against Rajasthan Royals, MI batters were high on confidence, something that was reflected in their batting against Punjab Kings in Mohali. After losing captain Rohit Sharma and all-rounder Cameron Green inside the Powerplay, the attacking pair of Ishan Kishan and Suryakumar added 116 runs for the third wicket and helped close the gap.

While Ishan scored 75 off 41 balls, SKY also completed his successive fifty, hitting 66 from 31 balls at a strike rate of a whopping 212.90. Such was the impact of his innings that PBKS could never make a comeback despite picking him in the 16th over.

Elaborating on how tough it is for a middle-order batter to come and dictate the chase, Raina said, “I think the best players in the world play in the middle order, the way they chase. There was a tough phase in the middle for him. But there was never a frown on his face because he was working hard. When the dressing room sees such performances, they automatically motivate others,” Raina added.

Raina, who is an IPL veteran, couldn’t stop praising Surya. He said every youngster watching the game must follow SKY’s footsteps on how to hunt down huge targets in this format.

“Every youngster should learn how to chase 200 runs from Suryakumar Yadav, the way he backs his cricket shots and plays in his range. Sensational batting,” Raina said.

After beating two strong units in RR and PBKS, MI will head to Chennai for the heavyweight clash against MS Dhoni’s Super Kings on May 6.