Synopsis
India's captain Suryakumar Yadav praised the outstanding performances of Abhishek Sharma and Varun Chakravarthy in the fifth T20I, noting that their success stems from a bold, high-risk strategy that led to a 4-1 series victory against England.Key Takeaways
- Abhishek Sharma scored a stunning 135 runs.
- Mohammed Shami took 3 wickets for 25 runs.
- India won by 150 runs, their second-largest victory margin.
- Varun Chakravarthy took 14 wickets in the series.
- Suryakumar emphasized an instinctive approach to captaincy.
Mumbai, Feb 2 (NationPress) India captain Suryakumar Yadav expressed his excitement over the phenomenal performance by opener Abhishek Sharma in the fifth T20I, along with the exceptional bowling by Varun Chakravarthy throughout the series. He described this success as a result of his team’s high-risk, high-reward approach, leading to a 4-1 victory against England in the five-match series.
Abhishek Sharma smashed an impressive 135 runs off 54 balls, enabling the home team to set a formidable target of 247/9. Meanwhile, Mohammed Shami took 3 wickets for just 25 runs, helping to dismiss England for a mere 87 runs. This marked a remarkable 150-run victory for India, their second-largest win in terms of runs.
Although England never appeared to threaten the massive target, Surya entrusted part-timers Shivam Dube and Abhishek Sharma with the ball, both of whom took two wickets, accelerating England’s collapse.
As a T20 captain, Suryakumar emphasized the importance of being instinctive on the field, highlighting the successes of Abhishek, Shivam, and Varun as aligned with India’s aggressive style of play.
"It’s always about being a little instinctive on the ground, whoever you feel might do something, throw them the ball. This is what we’ve discussed—what brand of cricket we want to play. We aim to stick to it. It’s a high-risk, high-reward game, but ultimately, we’re achieving results," stated SKY during the post-match ceremony at Wankhede Stadium on Sunday.
With Abhishek Sharma’s stunning century—recorded as the second-fastest by an Indian in T20Is—his family in attendance, Surya expressed joy for the batter, stating, "I’m very happy for his family as well; they must have enjoyed his innings. It was wonderful."
The Indian captain also commended Varun Chakravarthy, who emerged as the most prolific bowler in the series with 14 wickets across five innings. Surya noted that the Tamil Nadu spinner has been diligently working on his fielding skills, and the outcomes were evident.
"He’s been consistently working hard with our fielding coach Dilip sir, whenever he has time during practice. Today he volunteered to field in the outfield, and the results were clear. He is a process-oriented player, always looking to improve something new," said the India captain as the team, the reigning World Champions, continued to assert their dominance in T20I cricket.
