Ex-India fast bowler Varun Aaron is of the opinion that a single Suryakumar Yadav’s knock in the 1st T20I versus Australia will elevate the Indian batter's self-belief by a large margin. He emphasized that the attack on the ball elasticity of Suryakumar with a six off Josh Hazlewood was what Suryakumar’s innings was all about.
Footwork, confidence, and exploiting fielding gaps by Suryakumar Yadav
Speaking on Star Sports’ 'Follow the Blues', Aaron explained how the six helped Suryakumar shake off earlier struggles.
“No matter how big a batter, like we saw with Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in the ODI series, when you don’t get runs, suddenly it feels like you can’t hit a boundary. Suryakumar was averaging 11 before this innings, but he batted like himself. That first shot against Hazlewood was a statement — unbelievable timing and power. It got him off the mark,” Aaron said.
Former India wicketkeeper-batter Parthiv Patel added that Suryakumar looked assured in his footwork after the Hazlewood six.
“Getting one of your favorite shots at the start, as Suryakumar did, restored the surety in his footwork. He looked comfortable and confident,” Patel noted.
Patel also highlighted how Australia’s defensive field placements and Matthew Kuhnemann’s cautious bowling played into Suryakumar’s hands.
“Kuhnemann came to bowl with a defensive mindset, and fielders were positioned back. When big players see that, they know they can attack,” he explained.
Patel expressed surprise at Australia’s leg-side strategy, pointing out that keeping two deep fielders and bowling on the batter’s legs limited scoring options and inadvertently allowed Suryakumar to take control once he found rhythm.
