NEW DELHI: "I have been the world's number one batsman for the past two years,"
Suryakumar Yadav
had said in reference to his ability to adapt to various situations and adjust his style and technique based on the specific requirements of each match.
And the top-ranked T20I batter truly lived up to his words with a match-winning knock on a testing Barbados surface where other batters struggled to score runs in the T20 World Cup Super 8 clash against Afghanistan on Thursday.
Suryakumar's blistering innings of 53 runs from a mere 28 deliveries was instrumental in India's resounding 47-run triumph. His explosive batting display featured five boundaries and three maximums, earning him the
Player of the Match award
.
Most POTM awards in T20Is
- 15 Suryakumar Yadav (64 mat)
- 15 Virat Kohli (120)
- 14 Virandeep Singh (78)
- 14 Sikandar Raza (86)
- 14 Mohd Nabi (126)
By securing this prestigious award, Surya achieved a significant milestone, equaling the record held by Virat Kohli for the most Player of the Match awards in T20 Internationals, with both players now boasting an impressive tally of 15 such honors.
However, Surya's 15th Player of the Match award came in his just 64th match whereas Kohli played 120 matches to earn the same number of awards.
Trailing closely behind Surya are: Virandeep Singh from Malaysia, Sikandar Raza from Zimbabwe, and Mohammad Nabi from Afghanistan. Each of these players has earned 14 Player of the Match awards in their respective T20I careers.
Talking about the match, India posted a strong 181-8 after electing to bat in the Group 1 game.
When they returned to defend the total, pace spearhead
Jasprit Bumrah
(3-7) rattled Afghanistan with his double strike in the powerplay overs.
Fellow seamer
Arshdeep Singh
also claimed three wickets as Afghanistan were all out for 134 in exactly 20 overs.
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