India’s T20 captain and hard-hitting batter, may be returning after a break, following a sports hernia surgery, for the upcoming Asia Cup (September 9 to 28) in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), but going by his reputation, he still remains a threat for any opposition.
India take on UAE in their opening clash of the continental showpiece event on September 10 at Dubai, and the hosts are understandably wary of Surya.
Former India opener Lalchand Rajput, who was the team manager when Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s Team India lifted the inaugural 2007 T20 World Cup in South Africa, is currently the head coach of UAE, and admitted that Suryakumar will be the danger-man for most teams at the Asia Cup. UAE are placed in Group ‘A’ along with India, Pakistan and Oman while Group ‘B’ comprises Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Hong Kong.
Lalchand Rajput
SKY’s 360-degree factor
“When Surya gets going, it’s very difficult to bowl to him. I believe he will be a big threat to most of the teams. Surya is a top-class performer in T20s. He is a match-winner and is also known as a 360-degree player [given his wide array of shots all around the ground],” Rajput told mid-day on Monday.
Suryakumar, 34, has scored 2598 runs in 83 T20Is at a whopping strike rate of 167.07, including four hundreds and 21 half-centuries.
Rajput however, felt that playing against a quality team like India will be a good learning for his team. “India are a strong team and every young player looks forward to playing against them. So, for our players, this is a big occasion, a big platform to play against some of the world’s top teams. Just being able to rub shoulders with these big players will be a great experience and a good learning for our team,” said Rajput, who is also hoping that his boys can come up with an upset or two.
‘We can cause an upset’
“This is a big opportunity for us that two big teams — India and Pakistan — are in the same group. And in T20s, you never know, anything can happen, and we can create an upset. Recently, we beat Bangladesh [2-1 at Sharjah in May],” added Rajput.
Ahead of the , UAE will be playing a triangular T20I series with Pakistan and Afghanistan starting on August 29 at Sharjah. “Our bowling is good. In the batting department, we have [opener and skipper] Muhammad Waseem, Rahul Chopra and Alishan Sharafu, who all are good batters. But it’s a T20 game and anything can happen here. It all depends on how well we bowl on that particular day,” concluded Rajput, who has also coached Afghanistan and Zimbabwe in the past.