Suryakumar Yadav has only five innings in international cricket. You wouldn't know by watching him bat in one of those games. He looks nervous, decisive and crunchy in his stroke-play, calm and confident in his batting.
Debuting after the age of 30 probably means that Yadav may not have the length of international cricket like Prithvi Shaw and Ishan Kishan, but it also means that he has come to international cricket with a greater understanding . of his game. He made an immediate impact in the T20Is against England in March, and after moving into the ODI squad, he made a player-of-the-series performance against Sri Lanka.
India lost the third ODI, but won the series 2–1 and Yadav played a key role in each of the three matches. Starting his career, Yadav has found a good balance of soaking it up after years of waiting for it, a wait that lasted for a long time due to hunger.
After the third ODI against Sri Lanka, Yadav said, "Obviously everyone has a dream to play for India. It has been a lot of effort, a lot of hard work, a lot of patience behind this. "It's been worth the wait, and I'm really happy about it. From here on, how I make it is all in my hands. I'm really excited for the journey ahead."
Yadav has always been a strong batsman. But he described his return to Mumbai Indians in 2018 as the turning point, after which his game went to a new level. This is also shown by the numbers. Since the 2018-19 season, Yadav averages 55.56 in List A cricket at a strike rate of 131.88. He averages 37.60 in T20 cricket at a strike rate of 147.30.
Yadav said, 'I have always batted the way I am doing now. "But yes, after coming to Mumbai Indians in 2018, things started changing a bit. I got to know what is my responsibility, how do I go about my game, how can I take it a step further. That's when I started practicing. Started doing it. Even more. Spoke to all the players who know me really well for the last five-six years."
Yadav's scores in ODIs, 31*, 53, and 40 - all scoring better than a run-a-ball - indicate how quickly he got into the groove, although he did not advance into second and third. Expressed disappointment at the game he was leading during the second game, chasing India after being half-side out, when a moment of indecision meant he was stuck in front. While India won that match on the strength of Deepak Chahar's valor, Yadav's fall in the third ODI - he was once again the crucial wicket - meant that there was no such recovery.
Yadav said, 'I am disappointed by this. "The way I started in the first game, I got good confidence. In the second game, it was the perfect position for the team to win a game. But even at that time, it was not my way of playing and I got out." Gone. It was really frustrating. Even in the third game, today was a good opportunity to try to hold one end and play till the end, but couldn't. These are two things that I'm really keeping in mind , How can I build from here? But that's how you learn and grow."
This is perhaps a sign of the new-found consistency that Yadav has found in his game. He's in a patch of form where he hasn't had a 'bad' season, but his downplaying of setbacks hasn't come at the cost of any inventiveness. Yadav still executes through ramps, paddle-scoops, drives, flicks through the on-side while seemingly off balance.
"I have been a Mumbai boy," he said. “Growing up in Mumbai, the kind of pitch you get in club sports and domestic cricket, it is very challenging. So there you automatically think what strokes you have to play on those kind of wickets, and the same thing. What I am taking. International forum. I will do the same thing. Just trying to keep things simple while following my routine.
"The game remains the same. There is no change in the game, you play against any team, at any level, you just have to go out and do the same thing. What I do in domestic cricket, what I do in the nets , I try and do the same thing be it IPL, be it international sport. I just like to be myself. I like to go out there and enjoy. You must have seen, I like to run when I get a chance to bat. I really enjoy that moment."
For now, Yadav is running, and making sure that when India field a full-strength team, he is still in serious contention to be a part of, be it in ODIs or T20Is. Like he said, how he builds his career is in his hands. So far, those hands have worked great.