The Indian national team has seen a lot of depth in different batting positions over the last few years, and one player who is using his opportunities to the best of his abilities is Suryakumar Yadav, who is now a regular feature for the team in limited overs cricket. Joining in the adulations is former Australia cricketer Ricky Ponting, who believes that the Mumbai Indians (MI) batter is going to be a regular feature for India in the years to come, starting with the T20 World Cup.
"He's a very, very exciting player and I'm sure someone that's going to find himself in their team, not just their squad," Ponting said on the latest episode of The ICC Review.
"I think you'd find him in their team for the T20 World Cup. And if he's in that team, then I think all the fans in Australia are going to see a very, very good player. He's quite a confident person. He backs himself and he's never going to step down from a challenge or any situation that arises in a game. I feel he thinks he can win that situation and therefore go on and win the game for his team," he added.
Suryakumar has established himself as a regular in the number three spot in the absence of Virat Kohli, who is not only underperforming but has also chosen to skip the last two limited over series that India have played. However, Ponting believes that Kohli's place should not be compromised with, and the 31-year-old batter should play in the number 4 position.
"It's got to be in the top four, I think. I said stick with him (Virat) in his traditional spot, which has been number three. For Surya, it's one, two or four. I think he can open, but I think he's probably, you know if you could probably just keep him away from the new ball, let him control the middle part of the game outside the Powerplay, through in the middle, and if he's in at the end, you know what can happen," said Suryakumar.
Adding to his praises for SKY, as he is fondly known, Ponting compared his to former South African batter AB de Villiers in his prime, "Surya (Yadav) scores 360 degrees around the ground, a bit like an AB de Villiers did when he was in his actual prime. The lap shots, the late cuts, you know, the ramps over the keeper's head. He can hit down the ground," Ponting said.
"He hits really well over the leg side, flicks to deep backward square particularly well, and he's a good player of fast bowling and is a good player of spin bowling," he said.
