Suryakumar Yadav’s struggles in the ODI series against Australia continued with two consecutive golden ducks in the first two matches of the series. The 32-year-old was dismissed in the same manner in both innings, trapped leg before wicket by Australia pacer Mitchell Starc. With questions raised over his place in the team, skipper Rohit Sharma broke his silence and defended the batsman, saying he needed more time to prove himself.
#suryakumar yadav Got out on a golden duck in two consecutive innings _
Stark lbw Surya – 0(1) in 1st ODI.
Stark lbw Surya – 0(1) in the 2nd ODI.#INDvsAUS #vizag #Rohit Sharma pic.twitter.com/3oDQmUNHXk— Praveen Patil (@BooksAndCricket) March 19, 2023
“We don’t know about (Shreyas) Iyer’s comeback. At the moment there is a space available so we have to play him (Suryakumar). He has obviously shown a lot of potential with the white ball and I have said many times before. ” (He) will give some runs to guys with ability,” said Rohit at the post-match press conference after India’s humiliating 10-wicket defeat against Australia in Vizag.
“Definitely, he knows he needs to do that in the slightly longer format of the game as well. I think things are on his mind as well. Like I said, guys with ability will have enough runs where you know They should.” Well, you know I was not given enough chances in that particular slot,” the Indian skipper said.
While the world’s No. 1 T20I batsman’s ODI record is under scrutiny, Rohit has claimed that Suryakumar is aware of the need to perform in the longer formats of the game. The skipper insisted that the batsman hasn’t played in the team for a long time and has played only because of injuries. Rohit has said that the team management is not looking at replacing Suryakumar in the team at the moment, and the batsman will have a long rope before his ODI performances are judged. However, his place in the team is in doubt with Shreyas Iyer being injured and Sanju Samson not being picked despite his excellent record across formats.
“Yeah, he was out in the last two games and the series before that too, but he needs consistent runs, like back-to-back games, 7-8 or 10 games like that, you know, he’s more Feels comfortable. Right now, he is at the spot when someone is injured or someone is not available. As management we can look at the performance when you give runs consistently and then you think okay, Runs are not coming and (he) is not looking comfortable. Then, we will start thinking about it. Right now we have not gone that way,” Rohit said.
Despite Suryakumar’s poor performance in the series, he is unlikely to be dropped for the series decider against Australia on March 22 in Chennai. This will be India’s last international match before the 2023 season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). In short, Suryakumar Yadav continues to struggle in the ODI series, and his place in the team has been questioned. However, Rohit Sharma has defended the batsman saying that he needs more time to prove himself across formats, and is unlikely to be dropped for the series decider against Australia.