Former Indian fast bowler Munaf Patel has opined that Indian skipper Suryakumar Yadav is the Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli of T20I cricket. Barring a rough run in 2025, Yadav has been a consistent performer in the shortest format of the game.
Ahead of the T20I series against New Zealand, SKY had scored just 244 runs at an average of 12.84 and had a top score of 47 in the last 22 innings. However, the right-hander was able to turn his form, scoring 82 runs in the second game and backing it up another good knock of 57 runs in the third T20I against the Kiwis.
Munaf Patel said on Breaking Sports with Vivek Sethia, “Look, Suryakumar is Suryakumar. Just like you count Rohit and Virat in ODIs and Tests, Suryakumar is the Rohit and Virat of T20s. We always manage big players like this. A player is dropped only when you lose everything. But when you keep winning, some things stay hidden. This is your chance to give Suryakumar a chance.”
“You are winning, so there is no problem. If you were losing, it would be a problem. When you are winning, you should back him. He is also a legend of the format, so you have to support him. You don’t have a choice. He 100% deserves his place. Suryakumar, like Virat and Rohit, can play an inning that makes you forget everything else, and he has that ability,” he added.
On the other hand, Munaf Patel questioned the selectors for dropping Shubman Gill from T20Is. Gill could not grab his chances at the top of the order after he was picked for the Asia Cup.
“Tell me this. When you picked him based on Gujarat Titans’ performance, he was playing at the same strike rate there as well. So when you are selecting him, don’t you do the calculation? You should decide the role and convey the same to him. Now, in that role, you give him one or two series. If he’s not performing as per the role the team has given him, drop him; don’t give him two or three more tournaments.”
“It looks very bad if a Test and ODI captain and a franchise is being dropped from T20. It looks completely wrong as it appears now. Just give him the role. If he is not performing, he himself will say drop me, I can’t do it. Either you give him the role and he performs, and then announce we gave him this role. What is very important is that if there is a communication gap, building a team becomes very difficult,” he added.
The fifth and final T20I between India and New Zealand will be played at Thiruvanthapuram on Saturday.
