India captain Suryakumar Yadav lauded the batting group after registering a 48-run victory against New Zealand in the first T20I of the five-match series at the VCA Stadium in Nagpur.
Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, Suryakumar said:
“The way we batted, even when we were put under pressure in the powerplay, we were 25 for 2, we took the game till the 15th over and then never stopped. All the batters contributed.”
India lost Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan inside the first three overs of the innings. However, from there, Abhishek Sharma and Suryakumar took responsibility and built a 99-run partnership off 47 balls, which provided stability to the innings. Although Suryakumar once again could not convert his start, Abhishek top-scored with a blazing knock of 84. His innings included five fours and eight sixes at a strike rate of 240. Rinku Singh’s fiery 44 in the slog overs helped India post 238/7 in their 20 overs.
In reply, except for Glenn Phillips (78), none of the other New Zealand batters showed much fight, as India restricted the visitors to 190/7 in their 20 overs.
Batting at No. 4, Suryakumar scored a valiant 32 off 22 deliveries. Reflecting on his innings, the Indian captain said:
“I felt good when I went out to bat. It was the perfect time for me to go in, a good pressure situation. I’ve been batting in that situation regularly. As I said earlier, I’ve been batting really well in the nets. It was just a matter of time. Once you play a few balls, you bat the way I bat, and that doesn’t change my identity. I think it came naturally. Whatever strokes I played, I’ve been practising them over the last two or three weeks. I’ve been doing the same in net sessions and played a few practice games as well, so I was feeling good.”
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