‘Important to Give Suryakumar Yadav Cushion of Extra Games; Tilak Varma Looks Very Promising’: Rohit Sharma

Skipper Rohit Sharma has backed Suryakumar Yadav to replicate his T20I form in the 50-over format after his failures in the ODI series against Australia and West Indies. The flamboyant batter is ICC ranked number 1 batter in T20Is but his numbers in ODIs are quite underwhelming. In 26 ODIs, Suryakumar has scored 511 runs at an average of 24.33. In the absence of Shreyas Iyer, India tried SKY at the number 4 position but he failed to fill in the shoes and was moved to number 6 recently.

Rohit said that Surya is working hard to get his rhythm ODIs and said that it’s important to give him some extra games to give him some confidence.

“He is really working hard, and he is talking to a lot of guys who have played a lot of ODI cricket as to what kind of attitude and mindset (to have)… like that”

“It is important to give a batter like him the cushion of extra games so that he finds that groove and gets that confidence. The way he started the IPL this year, in the first 4-5 games he did not have too many runs. But look what he did after that,” Rohit told the media on the sidelines of an event.

Rohit feels SKY is a match-winner and the team management is trying to create a situation for him where he feels comfortable.

“For a player like him, it is our job to create such a situation and scenario — ‘It’s okay, if you don’t do well in 2-3 games we are okay, but when you come off, we know that you will win games straightaway’.

“That is what he did in the third T20I, the batters at the top got out and for Surya to go and bat like that… it is a different format. But we will also have to see how long we can stretch this (having Suryakumar at No. 4),” Rohit said.

With young left-handed batter Tilak Varma being touted for a spot in the World Cup squad given his batting prowess, Rohit refused to give away anything other than praising him.

“He looks very promising. I have seen him for two years now, he has got the hunger, and that is the most important thing,” Rohit said.

“In him I can see, for the age that he is of, he is quite matured. He knows his batting so well. When I speak with him I understand that the boy knows his batting – where he has to hit, what he has to do in that period.

“That is all that I will say about him, I do not know about the World Cup and all, but definitely the guy is talented and he showed it in these few games that he has played for India,” he added.