KKR vs MI, IPL 2021: When was the last time Suryakumar Yadav scored a 50 against Kolkata?

The Mumbai Indians' (MI) Suryakumar Yadav will be a relieved man after he raised his bat following a scintillating fifty against KKR on Tuesday (April 13) in Chennai in Match 5 of IPL 2021.

Yadav blitzed a 35-ball-56 against Kolkata, his 12th in the IPL. The knock was studded with seven fours and two handsome sixes. The Mumbai batsman stitched a valuable 76-run partnership with skipper Rohit Sharma to help the side rebuild after losing Quinton de Kock cheaply early on in the innings.

When did Suryakumar Yadav last score a 50 against Kolkata?

Suryakumar Yadav's fifty against KKR on Tuesday was his second. After a 39-ball-59 in 2018, his subsequent scores against the Kolkata-based franchise read 36, 26, 46*, 47, and 10. He now has two fifties each against KKR, the Rajasthan Royals, and the Chennai Super Kings.

Yadav had a fruitful IPL 2020, stacking up 480 runs in 16 matches at an average of 43.50 and a strike rate of 147.56. He continued from where he left off in IPL 2021, blitzing 31 runs against RCB and then following it up with a breezy 56 against Eoin Morgan's men.

Suryakumar Yadav's stellar domestic run

Yadav comes off a rich run in the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy, scoring a hundred in two fifties that also earned him a national team call-up for the series against England. He made his debut for India in the T20I series, scoring 57 and 32.

The good run from Suryakumar Yadav just bolsters the already impressive middle order for MI, who are looking for their sixth IPL championship. While at it, there are also a list of milestones he can reach while donning MI colours.

For starters, Yadav is three games away from playing 50 matches for MI in the IPL. He is 13 sixes away from completing 50 sixes for the franchise, which is all but a possibility keeping in mind the rich vein of form he is in.

Earlier, he outlined how a positive frame of mind would work wonders for performance in a high-octane tournament like the IPL.

"Yes, obviously you need to be in a good space in the nets session. I feel the more positive you are coming out of the net session, the less you think in the game when you go out to bat. Or bowl, whatever you do. So yeah, I feel mindset plays a big role. If you’re in a good space, good zone, nothing else matters"