IPL 2020 | Wish I had the ability to play extravagant strokes like Suryakumar Yadav, quips Quinton de Kock
Quinton de Kock, who was adjudged Man of the Match on Sunday for his whirlwind 53, expressed his admiration for Suryakumar Yadavās strokeplay and quipped that heād love to borrow a few strokes from the latter. De kock further revealed that Mumbaiās strength lies in keeping things simple.
Suryakumar Yadavās appetite for runs, thanks to him having scored over 400 runs in each of the last two IPL editions, is something thatās been well-documented, but the right-hander has taken the viewers aback this season with some astonishing strokeplay. His 233-run campaign in IPL 2020 has been filled with all sorts of fancy strokes - be it flicks or sweeps or scoops or lofted drives - and on Sunday in Abu Dhabi, the 30-year-old once again put on an exhibition.
Walking in under serious pressure, with Mumbai having just lost skipper Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar, unphased by the situation, played one of āthoseā knocks and sliced through the opposition with grace. Together with Quinton de Kock, with whom he shared a rapid 46-run stand, the right-hander toyed with the bowling to the extent that a target of 163, at one stage, felt like a sub-100 chase.
The man who had the best seat in the house to witness the āSKY exhibitionā was MI keeper de Kock and speaking post match, the southpaw expressed his admiration for the right-handerās immaculate stroke-making ability. While commenting that he wished to possess the same range of shots as Suryakumar, de Kock revealed that the right-handerās intent allowed both him to settle and MI to make easy work of a stern target.
"To be honest, I don't think I am brave enough to play any of them. But if I can reverse lap Jofra Archer, I wish I could do that. That's about it,ā de Kock said of Suryakumar Yadavās stroke-making ability.
"When Surya came in, we just naturally assessed what we were dealing with out there. Did help that when he walked out there, he had intent. He was off to a flier with boundaries and rotated the strike. It helped me at my end too and helped me relax. We just naturally batted well together and toughed it out really well."
The win on Sunday took the defending champions to the top of the table, and clarity in thought process is generally believed to be one of the biggest reasons for the sideās success. In fact, this has also reflected in their team selection, with the side having made just one personnel change all season. De Kock revealed that MIās mantra is to keep things simple, and claimed that they were aided by the fact that the team is filled with match-winners from top to bottom.
"We are a team that keeps it simple. We know where our strengths lie and we try to bring them into every game. Once or twice, we haven't been able to and come second best. But we have a bit of momentum now. We have really good players in our team. If it's not one then the other is going to do that for the team."