Mumbai Indians star batsman Suryakumar Yadav has been one of the major talking points in this season’s IPL. The right-handed batsman was tipped to receive a maiden call-up to India. But unfortunately, turned out to be a huge disappointment but his team-mates Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya get a call.
Earlier, BCCI announced Team India squads for the Australia tour, and Suryakumar was not picked in any of the squad. The national selectors didn’t knock on his door despite Surya’s impressive performances in domestic and IPL.
Suryakumar ended up as the third-highest run-scorer for Mumbai Indians in this season. Batting at No.3, the flamboyant cricketer played all kinds of shots all around the park and stunned the cricket fraternity.
He scored 480 runs in 15 innings at an average of 40 where he hit four half-centuries. Impressed by his batting performance, veteran off-spinner Harbhajan Singh labeled him as “Indian AB de Villiers”.
Rohit Sharma reacts to Surya’s disappointment
Surya himself was disappointed after he was not picked for the team’s tour of Australia. Mumbai Indians captain is well aware of Surya’s batting potential. Rohit Sharma has now disclosed how Surya dealt with frustration.
In an interview with TOI, Rohit opened up that when the Indian squad was announced, the players were sitting in the dressing room and Surya was dejected. Needless to say, instead of consoling him at that time, the MI captain decided to give him space.
Time will come for Suryakumar: MI Captain
Netizens took to their respective Twitter handles to criticize the national selectors for ignoring Suryakumar. The batsman has all the ingredients to play for the Indian national cricket team.
Earlier, Indian head coach Ravi Shastri heaped praise on Suryakumar Yadav. The coach added that Surya could not get into the team because the team already boasts quality players on the side. Shastri urged Surya to be patient.
Even BCCI President Sourav Ganguly lauded Suryakumar by calling him a fantastic batsman. Ganguly said time will surely come for Suryakumar in the future. Speaking on the same lines, even Rohit told positively about Suryakumar.
Rohit reckons that Surya is not far away from earning his maiden call-up to the Indian team. According to MI captain, Surya is heading in the right direction. Since there will be a lot of games, Surya’s time will come according to Rohit.
“We were sitting in our team room and I could feel he was dejected. But I didn’t go and speak to him. It was he who came up and said, ‘Don’t worry I will get over it and win the matches for MI’,” Rohit Sharma said.
“And when he said that I also realized he is heading in the right direction not only in terms of IPL but in his overall career. There are a lot of India games and his time will come. If you ask me, my philosophy is mind over matter and that’s what works for me,” Rohit concluded.
