Consistent Surya lifts MI in tough middle overs

Mumbai: Before the IPL started, Suryakumar Yadav’s form was a worry. In February, against England, he had managed only 28 runs in five T20Is at a strike rate of 116.66. Even in the earlier series against South Africa, held in November 2024, he hadn’t made any noteworthy contribution except for a 17-ball 21 in the first game to average 8.67 in four games.

But Surya has quickly silenced all his doubters with a series of impressive knocks in the Indian Premier League. In his last 10 innings in the T20 league, the Mumbai Indians star’s lowest is a 15-ball 26. He’s only the second batter to achieve the streak of 10 consecutive scores of 25-plus after Robin Uthappa had ten consecutive 40-plus scores in IPL 2014.

After the win over Sunrisers Hyderabad, captain Hardik Pandya had said: “I’ve felt, once everyone starts clicking in this team, there will be domination.”

Surya is the best example. In his performance, one can see what Pandya meant. When he starts to click, he takes the team to a different level. He is the leading run-getter for Mumbai Indians with 427 runs (average of 61.00) at a strike rate 169.44. The result – Mumbai Indians sealed their fifth successive win in comfortable fashion this season to climb to the third spot in the table with 12 points in 10 games.

The only thing missing for India’s T20 captain was his trademark, jaw-dropping knock. Surya ticked that box as well on Sunday with a 28-ball 54 against Lucknow Super Giants.

During his innings, Surya ensured MI won the middle overs against LSG. Coming to bat in the ninth over, he was at the crease till the 18th over. A proven player of spin bowling, he made a difference with his domination against LSG’s spin spearhead Ravi Bishnoi. In the eight balls he faced off Bishnoi, Surya smashed 23 runs as the leggie ended up with figures of 4-0-41-1.

Bishnoi faced the brunt of Surya’s aggression in the 13th over of the MI innings. Getting the strike on the second ball, Surya smashed the next three balls for a six, four and four. First, he got underneath a googly and smashed it over deep midwicket, sending it high into the stands, he then brought out his sweep shot and edged the fourth ball through the vacant slip area.

While he has mastery over the sweep shot, he can equally put off the pacers with his innovative, daring shots behind the wickets. He bats without fear to open the field with his 360-degree strokeplay. It says a lot that even the equally dashing T20 batter, Jos Buttler, is a fan of Surya’s innovative batting. During the game between Gujarat Titans and MI earlier in this IPL, Buttler even sought out Surya during the warm-up ahead to better grasp his technique of playing the flick shot.

“I love watching Surya bat. He is one of the best players in this format for a while now. Any time I see him bat, I can’t work out that flick over fine-leg he plays. I was sort of saying to him when are you going to teach me that shot. I can’t work that out that shot,” Buttler told HT in an interview.

In Sunday’s game Surya had Hardik Pandya marvelling at his stroke from the non-striker’s end, when he went down on one knee to hook Prince Yadav for a six (third ball of the 15th over). The TV cameras caught the MI captain Pandya smiling and shaking his head in disbelief.

During the course of the innings, the MI batter completed 4000 runs in IPL, in 2714 balls, the third quickest to the milestone after Chris Gayle and AB de Villiers.

With his consistent displays, he is in the running for the prestigious Orange Cap for the top run-getter. In fact, by the end of the MI innings, he had climbed to the top of the run charts before Virat Kohli leapfrogged him with a fifty in Sunday’s second match.

During the mid-innings broadcast interview with the Orange Cap on, Surya said: “This is the first time after a really, long time I am wearing this cap. This feels special.”

Indeed, special to Surya and all those watching him too.