[Watch] Suryakumar's Funny Head-Scratching On Maiden T20I Knock As Captain
Suryakumar Yadav hammered 80 off 42 deliveries (Twitter)
Suryakumar Yadav made an excellent start to his captaincy tenure for India in T20Is by blasting a match-winning 80 off 42 deliveries in the opening match of the ongoing five-game series against Australia on Thursday (November 23).
The extravagant right-hander overcame the bitter disappointment of losing the World Cup 2023 final in Ahmedabad and lit up the jampacked stadium in Visakhapatnam in the first T20I by hammering the top score during the stiff but eventually successful overhauling of Aussies' daunting 208/3 in 20 overs.
The run-chase featured valiant contributions from half-centurion Ishan Kishan and also opener Yashavi Jaiswal (21) and end-overs aggressor Rinku Singh (22*) but it was the skipper whose mental strength and belligerence on display were greeted with special praise by fans and experts.
Following the match, however, Suryakumar spoke selflessly in glowing praise of the knocks played by Kishan in the middle-order and Rinku for the finishing act in the 20th over against Sean Abbott and amusingly fumbled when asked to recall his own magnificent display on the night.
Suryakumar Yadav Stumbles Recalling 80 off 42 Vs Australia
Speaking to the BCCI.tv in a special interview after India's series-opening triumph by two wickets in a thrilling encounter in Visakhapatnam, Suryakumar scratched his head recalling the details of his own innings in the middle.
In a special segment called 'Stat Check With Sky', the Mumbaikar emerged so consumed with his captaincy duties and happy with the Indian win that he seemingly forgot his own display and took time answering questions about his knock.
During the Q & A, Suryakumar was asked how many fours he smashed and the number of sixes he belted against the Aussies. Funnily, the cricketer initially stood lost for memory even when he was asked to comment on how many runs he finished with.
Suryakumar said "arre baaap re (oh my god)" and looked at the giant screen with a big beaming smile for affirmation that he indeed made 80 runs but still forgot the number of balls he faced, hilariously giving the wrong answer of 41 instead of 42 deliveries.
 "Kashish Chadha")
