Rohit Sharma has backed Suryakumar Yadav to do well in ODI matches. Even though Suryakumar has had difficulties in being consistent, Rohit Sharma believes in his ability. Suryakumar Yadav is known as one of the best T20 batsmen worldwide, but he has faced challenges in getting used to playing ODI cricket.
Suryakumar Yadav has played 26 ODI matches and scored only 511 runs with an average of 24.33. This performance hasn’t been very good, and it has raised questions about whether he will be selected for the upcoming Asia Cup and ODI World Cup tournaments with the Indian team.
Rohit Sharma backs Suryakumar Yadav
During a La Liga event in Mumbai, Rohit Sharma talked about the differences in difficulties faced in T20 and ODI cricket. He pointed out that Suryakumar is putting in a lot of effort and learning from experienced ODI players to improve his approach and way of thinking.
“There is no question about his ability in the T20 format. The challenges (in ODIs) are different. He is really working hard and he is talking to a lot of guys who have played a lot of ODI cricket as to what attitude and mindset (to have). Surya is also in the mix. The team management backs him to come good in ODIs, but despite the chances, he is yet to adapt,” Rohit Sharma said.
Rohit pointed out the impressive change in Suryakumar’s performance during the IPL 2023 season. He had a tough start but eventually displayed his batting skills effectively.
“He is the kind of player, you also have to give him that freedom to go and bat the way he does. You cannot tell him to face 100 balls and make 50 runs. It is important to give a batter like him the cushion of extra games so that he finds that groove, gets that confidence. The way he started IPL this year, in the first 4-5 games he did not have too many runs but look what he did after that,” he said.
Rohit also gave a lot of compliments to Suryakumar for his performance in the third T20I against the West Indies. He believes Suryakumar can bring the same level of performance to the ODI format.
“For a player like him, it is our job to create such a situation and scenario – it’s okay if you don’t do well in 2-3 games, but when you come off, we know you will win games straightaway. That is what he did in the third T20I, the batters at the top got out, and for Surya to go and bat like that,” he added.
