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India talisman Suryakumar Yadav took Twitter by storm after he smashed a sensational century against Sri Lanka in the series decider in Rajkot on Saturday. The swashbuckling cricketer took the Sri Lankan bowling apart in what was a wonderful exhibition of 360-degree batting at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium. Showing why he's ranked No.1 in T20I cricket, Suryakumar Yadav, or SKY as he's fondly called, slammed an unbeaten 112 off 51 balls, including 9 sixes and 7 boundaries to power India to a mammoth total of 228/5.
In reply, the Sri Lankan batters wilted under the pressure of chasing down a huge score as they were bowled out for just 137 with Arshdeep Singh being the pick of the Indian bowlers with figures of 3/20.
It was the middle-order batter's third ton in T20Is in only seven months since he struck his maiden hundred against England in July. With his century against Sri Lanka, Suryakumar Yadav became the first non-opener in the history of T20Is to hit three hundreds.
In the process, SKY also became the quickest to complete 1,500 runs in the shortest format of the sport.
In 45 T20Is so far, the 32-year-old cricketer has made 1,578 runs with a highly impressive average of 46.41 and a stunning strike rate of 180.34. During his brief career for India, Suryakumar Yadav has already smashed three centuries and 13 fifties.
Suryakumar Yadav is now only behind Rohit Sharma as far as centuries in T20Is are concerned as he went past KL Rahul after his stunning unbeaten innings against the Dasun Shanaka-led team.
SKY's ton against the islanders was the second-fastest ton scored by an Indian in T20Is. While Suryakumar Yadav reached his hundred in 45 balls, KL Rahul took 46 deliveries to complete his century against West Indies in 2016.
Rohit Sharma, on the other hand, remains the record holder, scoring a ton in only 35 balls against the Lankan Lions in 2017.
List of Indians with the most hundreds in T20Is:
Rohit Sharma – 4
Suryakumar Yadav – 3
KL Rahul – 2
Virat Kohli – 1
Not many people have batted as well as this in their dreams. #SuryakumarYadav
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) January 7, 2023
Now, we can say that Suryakumar Yadav is the 🐐 of T20I cricket. pic.twitter.com/QEGB7JNsyB
— Vishal. (@SPORTYVISHAL) January 7, 2023
Suryakumar Yadav has most sixes in T20Is Int'l since his debut – He is unmatchable, he is in different league. pic.twitter.com/desuproFco
— Tanuj Singh (@ImTanujSingh) January 8, 2023
https://twitter.com/ppgosavi/status/1611794721109860353
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Suryakumar Yadav's lowest Strike Rate while having a 50+ score in T20is is 141.67. He has 10 50+ scores out of 16 at over 180 Strike Rate.
– Crazy stats, Sky is unbelievable!
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) January 7, 2023
After the match, SKY revealed he was enjoying his batting, adding that it was a fresh start for him in 2023 after his heroics the previous year.
“I'm really happy with the way the innings went. The captain winning the toss and batting first showed faith in the batters, few shots are pre-determined, but these are the shots I've been playing over the last year and I'm not doing anything different,” Suryakumar Yadav told Star Sports, the official broadcaster of India's series against Sri Lanka.
“The 2022 form is gone, it's a fresh start in 2023 and I hope to continue doing well. It's a good pitch, nice bounce and a lush outfield,” Suryakumar Yadav added.
“It is really important to put pressure on yourself when you are preparing for the game. The more pressure you put, the better you can play. There is a lot of hard work involved. Some quality practice sessions are also involved. The boundaries behind were 59-60m, so I tried to clear them. There are a few shots that are pre-determined but you have to be ready for other strokes as well. Most of the time, I try to find the gap, and use the field to my advantage, Dravid lets me enjoy, and tells me to express myself,” SKY explained.
Meanwhile, India captain Hardik Pandya made stunning remarks following Suryakumar Yadav's extraordinary ton in Rajkot.
“I think he has been surprising everyone every innings that he is batting. He is just telling us that batting is so easy. If I were bowling to him, I'd be disheartened on seeing his batting, with the shot he plays. He has played blinders after blinders,” Hardik Pandya said.
Suryakumar Yadav recently revealed the one cricket stroke he would want to add to his arsenal and it is the no-look shot South African teenage sensation Dewald Brevis has so successfully employed in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
“I'm just trying to copy you sometimes. The way you bat. You have to teach me one thing. How do you do that no-look shot, no-look six? I just want to learn that from you,” Suryakumar Yadav could be seen asking South African youngster Dewald Brevis in a video posted by the official YouTube channel of Mumbai Indians.
Responding to Suryakumar Yadav's request, Dewald Brevis said that he will be honored to teach him the shot.
“I would love to, it would be an honor. I would love to learn lots of shots from you as well. I want to tell you a funny story of this. My no look just happens. It's weird, I don't know, it just happens,” Dewald Brevis replied.
