Dale Steyn commends Suryakumar Yadav for not changing his batting blueprint after being captain: “He’s not going to change the approach.”

In the opening innings of the recent home T20I series against Australia, Suryakumar Yadav, who captained India for the first time, produced a classic knock. Tuesday, December 12, saw the first Twenty20 international of the three-match series between South Africa and India in Gqeberha. Rain caused the game to end early, and the hosts won using the DLS method with just five wickets and seven balls needed.  With three sixes and five fours in 36 balls, the daring batsman scored 56 runs.

Dale Steyn, a former fast for South Africa, praised Suryakumar Yadav for continuing to bat in the same way after assuming captaincy of the “Men in Blue.”

“Just after the break, we had a conversation about him. He seems pretty effortless, and he has a lot of shoots. Being a captain is a burden at times. After the game, Steyn spoke to Star Sports and stated, “There’s a lot that you have to think about, and it can sometimes change the way that you play your game.”

He left the house at six for two, and he was still able to hit for about 200. That demonstrates to you that he won’t alter the way he scores runs. He will not alter the strategy. And it seems like a good thing for India moving forward because you can be sure that he will always be assertive and that the opposition won’t be able to just walk in there and do whatever they want,” Steyn continued.

South Africa leads 1-0 in T20Is, despite Rinku Singh’s valiant efforts.

Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill, the Indian openers, left the field without a run after Aiden Markram won the toss and decided to bowl first. Before the rain stopped play, the tourists managed to reach a respectable score of 180/7 in 19.3 overs, thanks to half-centuries from Suryakumar Yadav and Rinku Singh. When play began, Rinku was still undefeated at 68 off 39 balls; hence, there was no time left for India to bat again.

The Proteas’ updated goal was 152 runs in 15 overs. Every time the ball was struck out along the ground, it became wet and the Indian bowlers found it difficult to hold onto. Markram and Reeza Hendricks’ cameos helped South Africa pursue the goal with relative ease. At the end, David Miller, Tristan Stubbs, and Andile Phehlukwayo also contributed. This Thursday, December 14, in Johannesburg, is the third and final Twenty20 International.