IND vs SL: "He Was Ahead Of Suryakumar Yadav" - Irfan Pathan Feels AB de Villiers Had More Power

Suryakumar Yadav can hardly be compared to any of AB de Villiers or Jos Buttler, according to Irfan Pathan, because the former two are known more often for their power game.

Suryakumar scored 51 runs off 36 deliveries in the second Twenty20 International against India and Sri Lanka on January 5 in Pune. His effort was fruitless, though, as the Men in Blue fell to a massive 207-run goal and lost by 16 runs.

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Suryakumar Yadav Has More Range Than Jos Buttler: Irfan Pathan

When asked if Suryakumar Yadav is nearly comparable with Jos Buttler during a conversation on Star Sports, Pathan responded:

“It is very difficult to compare. You cannot compare with AB de Villiers as well because I feel AB de Villiers had more power. He was ahead of Suryakumar Yadav when you talk about hitting over long-off or overs the covers consistently.”

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Though he may be less strong than Buttler and AB de Villiers, the former Indian all-rounder thinks India’s Mr. 360 has a larger variety of strokes in his repertoire, explaining:

“If we talk about Jos Buttler, he has comparatively much more power, if you talk about range hitting. But if you talk about the range, Suryakumar Yadav has a bigger one – he can play the cut, hit over covers, mid-wicket, and play the sweep.”

During his 51-run knock, Suryakumar hit three fours and as many sixes. He and Axar Patel (65 off 31) put up a 91-run sixth-wicket stand, but he was unable to lead his team to victory.

You Won’t Get A Batter Like Suryakumar Yadav To Play In The Middle Overs: Irfan Pathan

Pathan believes that Suryakumar’s style of play is most suited for the middle phase of the innings, saying:

“He has two types of sweeps as well – he hits both behind and in front of the wickets. So considering that, he might have less power but a bigger range. You won’t get a batter like him to play in the middle overs.”

In his last statement, the former cricketer-turned-commentator recommended that the Mumbai Indians (MI) player bat at No. 4 for India, citing the following justification:

“That is why I was saying in the last match as well that he shouldn’t bat at No. 3. No. 4 is the right position for him because he comes there and starts playing the big shots against the spinners right from the start, shows his range and keeps the strike rate up. You won’t get a better batter than him at No. 4 in world cricket.”

Suryakumar has played 24 of his 42 T20I innings at No. 4. The right-handed batter has smashed 893 runs at an excellent average of 47.00 and an outstanding strike rate of 183.74 at the position.

Also Read: IND vs SL: Rahul Dravid Points At The End Of The Journey For Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma In T20Is

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