IND vs SA 2022: “He might not win orange cap, MoM but he will win you matches” – Mohammad Kaif hails Suryakumar Yadav 

Former Indian cricketer Mohammad Kaif is extremely pleased with Suryakumar Yadav. He labeled Surya a match-winner and hailed his ability to counter any opposition or surfaces. The 41-year-old also thinks that the charismatic batter is ideally suited for the No. 4 spot of the Indian T20I team.

The statement came after Suryakumar slammed an unbeaten 33-ball fifty in the first T20I against South Africa on a tricky pitch in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday (September 28). The right-handed batter hit five fours and three sixes during his entertaining knock.

SKY also shared an unbeaten 97-run partnership with KL Rahul for the third wicket to help the Men in Blue win the T20I opener by eight wickets.

Mohammad Kaif took to Twitter and wrote:

“Top class pacers or spinners, turning or seaming pitches, difficult match situation - nothing bothers Surya. He might not win orange cap, MoM but he will win you matches. No.4 pe rumal daal diya Surya ne, he's not moving for a long time. @surya_14kumar”

The World No. 2 T20I batter had also slammed a 36-ball 69 against Australia on Sunday, to help seal the series win for India.

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Suryakumar Yadav breaks multiple records in T20Is

Suryakumar Yadav also broke multiple records during his stellar knock against the Proteas on Wednesday. He went past Shikhar Dhawan’s (689) tally, scoring the most T20I runs for India in a calendar year. In 2022, the star batter has already scored 732 runs in 21 T20Is at a phenomenal strike rate of 180.29, including a century and five fifties.

Most runs for India in T20Is in a calendar year:

• Suryakumar Yadav - 732* runs in 2022
• Shikhar Dhawan - 689 runs in 2018
• Virat Kohli - 641 runs in 2016
• Rohit Sharma - 590 runs in 2018
• Rohit Sharma - 497* runs in 2022

The elegant batter also broke Pakistan wicket-keeper batter Mohammad Rizwan’s (42 sixes in 2021) record of hitting the most sixes in a calendar year. He has already smashed 45 this year.

Suryakumar will next be seen in action during the second T20I against South Africa in Guwahati on Sunday (October 2). He would be keen to continue his purple patch and guide India to a successive series victory.