‘I’ve seen great players like Sachin, Kohli, Viv Richards but…’- Indian great hails Suryakumar Yadav as ‘once in a century’ cricketer

Suryakumar Yadav played a blinder of an innings in the third T20I against Sri Lanka on Saturday. He smashed an unbeaten 51-ball 112 and helped India reach 228 for the loss of 5 wickets. After reaching fifty in 26 balls, Suryakumar took just 19 balls more to reach the 100-run mark. His innings included 7 fours and 9 sixes.

Suryakumar is arguably the finest T20 batter in the world at the moment. Shortly after Suryakumar’s tremendous knock against Sri Lanka, former legendary cricketer Kapil Dev called Surya the batter a ‘once in a century’ cricketer. He said players like Sachin Tendulkar, Vivian Richards, AB de Villiers, Virat Kohli, and Ricky Ponting are the great players of the game but only Suryakumar can hit the ball cleanly.

“Sometimes I am at loss of words on how to describe his knock. When we see Sachin Tendulkar, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, we feel someday there will be a player who will compel us to think he is also part of that list. There is indeed a lot of talent in India. And the kind of cricket he plays, that lap shot the one over fine leg, then that leaves the bowler frightened because he can stand and hit a six over mid-on and mid-wicket." Kapil was quoted as saying in Hindustan Times.

Very few can hit the ball as cleanly as him: Kapil Dev

"That is what makes it difficult for the bowlers because he is able to pick the line and length consistently. I have seen great batters like De Villiers, Vivian Richards, Sachin, Virat, Ricky Ponting, but very few can hit the ball as cleanly as him. Hats off to Suryakumar Yadav. This kind of players come only once in a century," added former World Cup-winning captain for India.

India posted a mammoth total of 228 in the series decider after opting to bat. Ishan Kishan fell early, and Shubman Gill took ten balls to get off the mark. But it was Rahul Tripathi, who ensured that India had a good powerplay. The Indian number 3 perished in the final over of the powerplay, and in came Suryakumar. The Indian star batter wasted little time getting off the blocks and he did what only he can do.