India's batsman Surya Kumar Yadav stunned the cricketing world with his all-around batting and aggressiveness in Ind vs Sri T20 match.
Surya Kumar Yadav batting style has made him one of the best entertainers in the game's shortest format. As a result of his consistency, Surya Kumar Yadav managed to leapfrog Muhammad Rizwan and David Malan to become the best T20 batsman in the India.
However, even the best players occasionally fail to execute their trademark shots properly. In the first T20 game against Sri Lanka, the India No.1 T20 batsman tried to go for his favorite scoop shot against Chamika Karunaratne. Although the ball was in his zone, he got under the ball a bit too much.
Eventually, the ball went straight to Bhanuka Rajapaska at short fine. The India batsman struggled in his first official match of 2023, scoring only 7 off 10 balls.
With the standards Surya Kumar Yadav has set in the last 12 months, he would be disappointed with his innings. The Mumbai Indians batsman has executed this shot successfully throughout his career.
In the World T20 last year, he stunned the world with this shot against South Africa and Zimbabwe, respectively. Fortunately, he's got plenty of matches ahead to get things right and bat the way we expect him to.
Surya Kumar Yadav is part of the 20-man list who will participate in the 2023 World Cup in India later this year. The Blues won the last World Cup played on their home turf in 2011.
India vs Sri Lanka: T20 Match Summary
Sri Lanka's captain Dasun Shanaka won the toss and elected to field first in the first T20 game of the tour in 2023. Despite getting an aggressive start through Ishan Kishan, the 2007 T20 champions could never hit the extra gear.
Shubman Gill was dismissed cheaply for 7 runs to break the opening stand of 27 runs. Surya Kumar Yadav came to the crease with lots of expectations on his shoulder. However, the 32-year-old disappointed his home fans as he lasted only 10 balls.
Another India batsman who disappointed the fans was Sanju Samson.
With Dinesh Karthik in the twilight of his career and Rishabh Pant out of the series due to the car crash, this was a massive opportunity for the Rajasthan Royals wicketkeeper. But he could only make 5 off 6.
Samson was soon followed by Kishan back to the dressing room, who made 37 off 29 balls.
Skipper Hardik Pandya tried to galvanize the innings before getting dismissed on 29. Despite the early struggles, India improved after the halfway mark, with Axar Patel and Deepak Hooda shining for the hosts. The pair added 68 runs for the sixth wicket as India finished with 162 on the board.
Just like India, Sri Lanka were also on the back foot in the early part of their batting innings, with Pathum Nissanka and de Silva departing early. Charith Asalanka tried to build a partnership with Kusal Mendis, but Umran Malik removed the left-handed batsman.
Shortly after, the Sri Lanka wicket keeper also returned to the pavilion after scoring 28 runs off 25 balls.
The 1996 World Cup winners finally got a firm hold of the game when skipper Shanaka and Wanindu Hasaranga built the foundation for the visitors' comeback. The pair added 40 runs off 19 balls before Shivam Mavi showed him the pavilion.
Despite the counter-attacking display by Chamika Karunaratne, Sri Lanka had too much to do as they finished two runs short of victory.