Former Indian Cricketer backs Suryakumar Yadav amid criticism over his selection in the Test team

Team India batter and world’s no.1 ranked T20I batter Suryakumar Yadav has been the talk of the town for a long time. And recently he got selected for the Test team for the four-match series against the Australian team. He made his debut for India in T20Is in March 2021 during the home T20I series against England. It came after toiling in domestic cricket for a decade and embracing patience.

Many fans and former cricketers criticized the selection committee after they selected Suryakumar for the test series against Australia starting on February 9. However, Former Indian cricketer Suresh Raina backed the right-handed batter to play Test cricket in an endeavor to become an all-format player for India.

“Absolutely, the way he is performing. I think he should play in all three formats and without him, all three formats should not even exist. The way he performed, the way he shows intent, the way he plans different shots, he also plays fearlessly and knows how to use the dimension of the ground.”

“He is a Mumbai player and knows how to play red-ball cricket. I think he has a great chance of playing Test cricket will get him another establishment in ODIs and some stability as well. He will score multiple 100s and then 200s,” Raina was quoted as saying by the Indian Express.

Sarfaraz Khan has been in insane form: Abhinav Mukund

Meanwhile, Former Indian opener Abhinav Mukund had a different view of Suryakumar's place in the Test side for the Australia series. The Tamil Nadu player preferred Suryakumar’s Mumbai teammate Sarfaraz Khan in the red-ball format because of his amazing form in the Ranji Trophy over the years.

"Why? Because why keep the Ranji trophy? Why not reward domestic performances? Sarfaraz Khan has been in insane form, I would have rewarded him with a cap for the Australia series at least. Suryakumar Yadav is exceptional in the T20 format. They want the same sort of belligerence from him in the Test side. But unfortunately, I’m the guy that follows hierarchy and Sarfaraz should be there.” Mukund was quoted as saying by the Indian Express.