Former Australia legend Mark Waugh has lauded in-form batter Suryakumar Yadav and said that the 360 batter has all the qualities to do well in the ODI format of the game. On Friday, Surya smashed a match-winning 50 in India's first ODI against Australia in Mohali. It was an absolute class from the Mumbai-based batter where he showed resilience and patience at the crease. As a result, his innings helped India chase down a target of 277 runs. The World No. 1 T20I batter also formed an 80-run partnership with stand-in captain KL Rahul.
"It's not about those ducks. All those things that people have been talking about, stuff like 'is he just a T20 player? Is he good enough to be a 50-overs player?'. He sure is, you don't lose your talent overnight. There are similar basics in T20 cricket and 50-over cricket. Hit the ball, run hard, put the bad ball away, he can do all those things really well," Mark Waugh told JioCinema.
"It's just a matter of him breaking free and not worrying about getting out. That's the one thing that always holds batters back -- thinking about getting out. If you can not think about that, then your natural instincts will take over and he will be fine," he added.
This was Suryakumar Yadav's first half-century in the ODI format after a huge gap of 18 months. This innings will give him a lot of confidence as he came back after enduring one of the toughest phases in international cricket where he registered three successive golden ducks in an ODI series against Australia at home. After sealing a five-wicket victory in Mohali, the Men in Blue will take on Australia at the Holkar Stadium in Indore on September 24.