SKY IS THE LIMIT: Suryakumar Yadav lights up Mumbai night to keep team’s hopes alive
He has become a refined version of batting with the speed of lightning and the sound of thunder.
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Sunrise on Saturday morning had a fresh glow. After watching the son of the soil Suryakumar Yadav sparkle, then scorch Gujarat Titans in a high stakes match in the Indian Premier League on Friday night, adjectives and applause were not in short supply for the Mumbai Indians superstar.
Where was Surya hiding till now in the IPL? Was he playing a game like cloud and clear? It seemed so, for Suryakumar Yadav, addressed as SKY, burst like the chemical-loaded crackers where a ton flowed from his bat. His innings was combust and robust. He used the bat like a painter uses the brush, paint, and weasel to create a masterpiece. SKY’s maiden IPL ton has set the tournament on fire, especially for the Mumbai Indians fans.
From a state of mourning to a state of euphoria, Suryakumar Yadav has transported fans through a whole gamut of emotions. Even for those not seated physically inside the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, they could feel the heat generated by SKY. This was as the old SKY, who produced strokes that torched bowlers, pierces the field, and then produces Maximum hits.
The transformation from failure to success during the course of two matches has changed the fortunes of Suryakumar as well as the Mumbai Indians. Experts are going gaga, street corner petty shops where you go for a smoke, all are talking about the centurion. This is the impact of Suryakumar Yadav, whose state of hibernation is over.
To be sure, Gujarat Titans versus Mumbai Indians had a lot of hype. It is the El Classico of the IPL, where the pièce de résistance was provided by two men, SKY and Rashid Khan. Both shone, the latter with bat and ball. In the end, the weight of runs which Suryakumar had plundered, 103 off 49 balls, was too heavy.
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Suryakumar Yadav just cannot stop!
This man has been known for his sustained onslaughts through the second half of the 2022 season in T20 cricket. From the Asia Cup in the deserts of the United Arab Emirates to the ICC World T20 campaign in Australia last year, Suryakumar became a celebrity. It was not just the Indians who celebrated him. When comparisons are made with a champion batsman, now batter, like AB de Villiers, you may think it is an exaggeration.
No, this Indian dude also has that 360-degree batter variety. He has become a refined version of batting with the speed of lightning and the sound of thunder.
One such knock was on Friday night, where Suryakumar Yadav exploded into brilliance. His innings was an essay in two parts. If the first one, a 50 was sedated by his own lofty standards, he then showed the ferocity of a pedigree Alsatian to bite Gujarat Titans. Even GT captain Hardik Pandya was left applauding and even hugging SKY, which was a great sign. One will also wonder why Pandya himself did not bowl and what caused this eclipse of sorts from Gujarat Titans towards the business end of the IPL 2023.
Former cricketers these days are lavish in praise. We have heard these men wielding the mikes with famous surnames sing paeans about IPL stars Rinku Singh, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and a few more this season. But for SKY to hammer someone like Mohammed Shami was scary. It showed intent, aggro, and that crazy willingness to innovate. He pierced the fielding, scattered them, in fact. It was a bit like watching those pigeons fly in daytime near the famous Gateway of India.
Scaring pigeons is easy and scarring Gujarat Titans very different. We have heard and read words like genius, outstanding, marauding, in praise of SKY. The big challenge is he cannot stop. This Mumbai Indians‘ side needs him even more. The home run is still away, though making it to the last four stage seems close. But then, even after that, to go full tilt at the title, Mumbai Indians will need SKY power. It is an over-dependency, for sure. What a shame, a team loaded with rich buys at the auctions relies on one man!
From Rohit Sharma to previous India captain Virat Kohli, they have praised Suryakumar Yadav sky-high. How long will this state of euphoria last?
“You can say that it is one of my best T20 innings,” said a simple Suryakumar after collecting the man of the match award. For someone who has hammered three hundred in T20 internationals, this latest burst will be remembered for a long time. The business end of the IPL will be fresher in memory.
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S Kannan
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