Published: May 01, 2025, 06:21 PM (IST)
Edited: May 01, 2025, 06:21 PM (IST)
The snub from India’s limited-overs tour of Australia in 2020-21 “hit me hard”, recalled Suryakumar Yadav, who said that episode also spurred him to produce one of his most memorable knocks in the Indian Premier League.
Suryakumar played a brilliant unbeaten knock of 79 runs from 43 deliveries against the Virat Kohli-led Royal Challengers Bengaluru in a tense chase in Abu Dhabi to help Mumbai Indians win by five wickets.
“It was an emotional knock because just a few days before, the team for the Australia tour was announced,” the Mumbai Indians batter recalled on JioHotstar.
“I had been building up for this over the past few years — my domestic season and IPL were going really well. I had prepared myself well for this season, even taking time during the Covid break to work on my body and mental health. I expected to be in the T20 squad,” Suryakumar added.
“Everyone around me, including teammates from other countries, thought I’d be flying to Australia. I was already on that flight, mentally. But when I wasn’t selected, it hit me hard. I couldn’t understand what went wrong,” Suryakumar further said.
Suryakumar said he took a break following the snub to refresh himself, adding that he didn’t even practice during that time and was in quite an off mood.
“I started thinking in a reverse way, I thought what and where it went wrong. For the next 2-3 days, I didn’t speak to anyone,” Suryakumar said.
“I took a break and didn’t even practice. I knew my mind and heart were not in the right place, so I decided to relax instead. When I returned to the ground, people noticed I was off, and Mahela Jayawardene and Zaheer Khan could see it too,” Suryakumar added.
