Dubai: Mumbai Indian’s hero Suryakumar Yadav was once again the star man as he led his side to a five-wicket victory over Virat Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bangalore in their latest IPL encounter on Abu Dhabi on Wednesday night.
Mumbai chased down the 165-run target against RCB, riding on an unbeaten knock of 75 from Yadav to all but guarantee themselves a place in the play-offs in the Indian Premier League 2020 in the UAE.
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Yadav was omitted from all three squads for India’s upcoming tour of Australia, something which has irked many fans and cricketers.
During the course of his 42-ball innings, Yadav played many brilliant shots and earned rich praise from many former and current cricketers, including his stand-in captain Kieron Pollard and India head coach Ravi Shastri.
However, there was one moment during his knock which stood out. On the last ball of the 13th over, the 30-year-old hit Dale Steyn which went straight to Virat Kohli standing at extra cover. Following that, Kohli kept walking towards the crease while Yadav stood with a deadpan expression on his facing staring at the RCB skipper. Both players kept looking at each other before the Mumbai batsman just walked away to change strike.
“Moment of the Match,” tweeted one of the social media users along with the video of the incident.
“That stare game between Suryakumar Yadav and Virat Kohli says it all. He is on a mission. Not getting selected has seriously affected him,” said another user.
Earlier, after reaching his half-century, Yadav came out with rather subdued celebrations. Even after hitting the winning runs, he came out with the ‘don’t worry I’m there’ gesture towards the Mumbai Indians dugout.
After the match, Pollard said Yadav will soon be rewarded with an India call up.
“Deep down inside he must be very, very disappointed to not have donned the blue for India. He just keeps getting better. Again as an individual if you keep staying consistent, you will be rewarded. Nothing happens before its time,” Pollard said at the post-match presentation.
