Stylish Surya paints Warner Park with his 360 degree range to churn out a classic

Suryakumar in action against West Indies

Suryakumar Yadav is a different kind of robber. While the other robbers steal materialistic things, SKY steals the show with his stylish, disdainful–at times arrogant, skillful to the point of being unreal, strokeplay.

On Tuesday, as Surya flayed the West Indian attack to the tune of 76 beautiful runs, the onlookers were left in awe, while gasping for breath.

On a surface where a majority of batters struggled to hit big shots, Surya, it looked as if he was playing Stick Cricket.

He was hamstrung with the absence of Rohit Sharma (retired hurt) and a lackluster knock from Shreyas Iyer, but it was just that sort of a day where SKY just didn't need any support; he was out there to paint Warner Park with his paintbrush-cum-sledgehammer masquerading as a cricket bat.

And, that he [Suryakumar Yadav] did with full authority!

The signs were clear from the 1st over itself when Surya nonchalantly shuffled across and flicked Obed McCoy for a wristy on-drive.

From thereon, it was a total highlight reel where he mixed elegance and panache with his 360 degree skills to ensure that each and every part of the ground was painted without bias.

Ferocious Upper-cuts over third-man? It was there. Wristy lofted on-drive? It was there Square-cuts? It was there. Pull shots? In plenty. Scoops? You bet. A lofted whip on the up over covers where he magically rolled his wrists? It sure was there. Slog sweeps? No SKY innings can ever be complete without them.

To measure the quality of a knock, one often tends to compare it with how the other batsmen fared on the same pitch.

On a surface, where even Kyle Mayers (73 off 50) struggled to consistently hit short of a length and slower deliveries, Surya made it look as if he was batting on a cemented track, where he could just line-up the bowlers and do whatever he wanted to do with them.

SKY was eventually dismissed while trying to do an encore of a scoop off Alzarri Joseph but not before he had put India in a commanding position.

Often, we tend to realize the worth of something when it's no longer with us. This is exactly what Indian fans must have felt post his dismissal as they saw the likes of Pant, Hardik, struggle their way to a run-a-ball target.

Surya (Sun) spreads uniformly in all directions. On Tuesday, Yadav made sure he gave a perfect tribute to his name.

Also Read: India pick up a comprehensive win on the back of a SKY classic