Team India skipper Rohit Sharma came out to speak to media in the pre-match press conference ahead of their ICC men’s T20 World Cup 2022 semifinal clash against England at the Adelaide Oval on Thursday (November 10). One of India’s biggest trump cards in the semifinal will be world No. 1 T20 batter Suryakumar Yadav.
Suryakumar has been in sensational form in the T20 World Cup 2022, smashing 225 runs in 5 matches at a strike-rate of over 193 with a brilliant 61 not out off 25 balls in India’s last match against Zimbabwe. Surya or SKY is Rohit Sharma’s teammate in Mumbai Ranji Trophy and the India skipper for full of praise for his batter.
From playing exquisite shots all around the park to excelling with the bat in the #T20WorldCup[?][?]@ashwinravi99 interviews our very own 'Mr. 360' - @surya_14kumar - By @RajalArora
Full interview #TeamIndia | #INDvZIM https://t.co/zQ6U4Fk7JR pic.twitter.com/S5a5Q6Uxed
— BCCI (@BCCI) November 7, 2022
Rohit said that Suryakumar is not someone who carries a lot of baggage, although he has a lot of suitcases because he loves his ‘shopping’. “Surya is a sort of guy, who doesn’t carry a lot of baggage, although he has a lot of suitcases because he loves his shopping. He has been batting like this for over a year now. Whether it is 10/2 or 100/2, Suryakumar bats in the same aggressive manner,” Rohit Sharma said during the pre-match press conference in Adelaide on Wednesday (November 9).
“That is the reason we picked him for the T20 World Cup in 2021 as well. The way he has performed since that World Cup till now, as we say ‘SKY is the limit for him’,” the Indian skipper added.
Suryakumar’s next opponents will be England, against who he scored his maiden T20I century earlier this year. SKY smashed 117 off 55 balls in a T20I in Nottingham with six sixes and 14 fours.
But while Suryakumar Yadav has been in sensational form, all-rounder Axar Patel has struggled with the ball throughout the T20 World Cup 2022. However, skipper Rohit continued to back his left-arm spinner although his economy rate is near 10 runs per over.
“I am not worried about Axar at all. He has hardly got the opportunity to bowl his full quota of overs. We have got four seamers in our side and in favourable conditions they are invariably bowling all four overs and the spinners are not completing their full quota. The conditions apart from Sydney have not suited spinners much which means we have not been able to bowl Axar in the Powerplay overs, which are his strength.
“He bowled exceptionally well in the last series as well. For me it is important to know what kind of head-space he is in and Axar has been quite positive so far,” skipper Rohit added.
Rohit will now aim to become just the second India captain after MS Dhoni (in 2007 and 2014) to guide India to a T20 World Cup final with a win over England in Adelaide.
