"A big concern for Team India" - Salman Butt on Suryakumar Yadav's ODI form

Former Pakistan captain Salman Butt believes that Suryakumar Yadav's failure to translate his red-hot T20I form into ODI cricket has become a major concern for Team India.

He pointed out that while Suryakumar has been unstoppable in the shortest format, he has consistently struggled in 50-over cricket.

Here's what Butt said about the dynamic batter's underwhelming performances in recent outings while speaking on his YouTube channel:

"Suryakumar Yadav's form is a big concern for Team India. When you look at his last 10 ODI matches, he has failed in almost all of them. This isn't a positive sign for a player who is considered to be a world-class batter.

"He has done really well and thrashed all the bowlers in world cricket last year in T20Is. He has struggled a lot in ODIs."

Notably, Suryakumar has bagged back-to-back golden ducks in the ongoing three-match ODI series against Australia. The right-handed batter was out leg before wicket against Mitchell Starc in the first two fixtures.

His batting average in the format has dropped to 25.5 following the twin failures. The 32-year-old had a chance to cement his place in the Men in Blue's ODI team in Shreyas Iyer's absence. However, he has failed to make the most of his chances till now.

---

"India are missing that a lot" - Salman Butt on Jasprit Bumrah's bowling exploits

Salman Butt further added that Indian bowlers have struggled at times in white-ball cricket, especially while defending low scores. He suggested that senior pacer Jasprit Bumrah's absence has had a major impact on the team.

The former cricketer highlighted how Bumrah had the ability to provide important breakthroughs for Team India even in batting-friendly conditions.

On this, Butt said:

"In batting-friendly conditions, unless you have genuine pace, it won't trouble the batters. Jasprit Bumrah has been out of action for a very long time now. He is the spearhead of India's bowling.

"Even on tracks that are good for batting, he is able to succeed because of his deceptive slower balls and accurate yorkers. India are missing that a lot."

Bumrah has been out of action since September last year owing to a back injury. He is not expected to feature in the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2023) or in the World Test Championship final.