IND v WI: Parthiv Patel Calls Suryakumar Yadav A 360 Degree Player; Compares Him To AB De Villiers

Former India keeper Parthiv Patel has lauded batter, Suryakumar Yadav, for his heroics in the recently concluded T20I series against West Indies, and called him a 360-degree player, comparing him with South Africa batting legend AB de Villiers.

Suryakumar Yadav starred in India’s 17-run win over West Indies on February 20 at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata in the third T20I of the series and helped the Men in Blue white-wash the Kieron Pollard-led side in the shortest format as well, after blanking them 3-0 in the ODI series previously.

31-year-old Suryakumar scored 65 runs hitting 7 sixes and 1 four in his knock and strung together a 91-run partnership with Venkatesh Iyer as he took India from 93/4 to 186/5 in just 37 balls, as the duo hammered the Windies bowlers, scoring 86 runs in the last 5 overs.

He finished with 109 runs in three innings in the T20I series against the West Indies, scoring at an impressive strike rate of 194.55.

Suryakumar Yadav Is India’s 360-Degree Player Like AB De Villiers: Parthiv Patel

Suryakumar was named the Player of the Match for his knock and was also awarded the Player of the Series trophy. In his short career for India, he has already notched up four half-centuries 12 T20I innings and former India wicketkeeper-batter Parthiv Patel feels the skilled right-handed batter has shades of South African batting star AB de Villiers.

“We’ve been talking about Suryakumar being versatile and having a good understanding of the game while coming in at the No. 5 position. His knock in the final T20I didn’t come under easy conditions as it was a sticky wicket. Rohit didn’t manage to score runs but Suryakumar started well and stayed till the end. A set batter at the death is always dangerous… and it becomes difficult for a bowler to deliver under pressure. He’s India’s 360-degree player like AB de Villiers,” Parthiv told Cricbuzz.

More or less, Suryakumar has confirmed his spot in the Indian T20I team with an eye on the T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia and also in the ODI team for the upcoming 2023 World Cup to be played in India.

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