"AB was one step better than Surya" - Harshal Patel dissects his plans against the Mumbai Indians batter

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) seamer Harshal Patel has opened up on bowling to Suryakumar Yadav ahead of their clash against the Mumbai Indians on Sunday. Harshal believes thriving against Suryakumar requires perfect execution, but feels AB De Villiers was a step higher.

While the right-handed batter has struggled to get going in one-day cricket, he is a beast in the shortest format. Suryakumar, the number one ranked T20I batter, has been consistent for the Mumbai Indians as well. Since joining the franchise in 2011, he has accumulated 2082 runs in 71 games at 33.59.

Speaking to ESPN Cricinfo, the 32-year-old reflected that De Villiers was fantastic at manipulating the bowlers on where he wanted them to bowl. He said:

"Look, man, someone of Surya's calibre, who's in the kind of form that he is in, all you can bank on is your planning and execution. What he does after that is up to him. This is not the first time I have encountered this problem. AB was one step better than Surya, in the sense that he would make you bowl where he wanted."

As for Suryakumar, Harshal reckons his greatest strenghts are the sweep shots and playing it in front of square by taking it on the body. He added:

"Surya will sweep you from almost outside the pitch on off stump. Another ability he has is to take the ball on his body all the time. Another ability he has is to take the ball on his body all the time. It's one thing to take the ball on your body and play in front of square, because you still have a lot of time to adjust if the ball comes out slower or faster."

"But if you are trying to play behind square and take the ball on your body - if it comes out a little slower or a little faster, it's going to hit you. And you have to be okay with that. I don't think many players are."

Suryakumar will be keen to get some runs after registering a hat trick of golden ducks in the ODI series against Australia. The 2022 IPL edition saw him amass 303 runs in eight matches at 43.29 with three fifties.

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"I will try to be as aggressive as I can" - Harshal Patel on bowling at Chinnaswamy Stadium

Harshal Patel. (Image Credits: Twitter)

When asked about his bowling plans ahead of the clash at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, Harshal Patel said he will proactively look for wickets and try to outsmart the batters with funky field placings. He explained:

"I will try to be as aggressive as I can, because the only way you can stop runs is by getting batters out. So more deliveries to force errors. The other thing is bluffing. It's going to play a huge part, especially when you are playing in high-scoring venues: how you use it and when you use it is important. You can't always bowl to your field."

"You set a field for a wide yorker and the moment the batter moves to reach for the ball, you bowl at the heel. Or you get your third man or fine leg up and bowl a couple of yorkers and then a bouncer, which is something batters don't usually expect."

RCB finished third in IPL 2022, eliminated after losing to runners-up Rajasthan Royals.