KKR fast bowler Vaibhav Arora was asked to choose the toughest batsman to bowl to. The Knight Riders batsman identified Mumbai Indians batsman Suryakumar Yadav as the toughest batsman to face, bypassing the likes of Virat Kohli or Abhishek Sharma.
Suryakumar Yadav started his career with Kolkata Knight Riders and won trophies with them before moving to Mumbai Indians. The batsman hails from Mumbai and has surprised everyone with his dynamic talent in the shortest format of the game.
Suryakumar discovered his true talent when he moved to Mumbai Indians and they encouraged him to open the innings. Mahela Jayawardene handled him carefully throughout the season and he won two trophies with the franchise.
KKR fast bowler described MI batsman as the most difficult to bowl to.
Kolkata Knight Riders fast bowler Vaibhav Arora was recently seen in a podcast with Shubhankar Mishra, where the show host questioned him on the ‘toughest batsman to bowl to’.
The KKR pacer didn’t hesitate or think much as he picked former KKR star and current Indian captain Suryakumar Yadav as the toughest opponent batsman to bowl to.
He said, “I think sir, he will be Suryakumar Yadav for me. I will have to think a lot against him, because he can play in all corners of the field. Field planning against him is a very difficult task.”
He said, “I have to think a lot while bowling to him, what field should I set for him, where should I put the fielders and what ball should I bowl against such a field? He can hit shots in all directions.”
Vaibhav Arora reveals what made Suryakumar Yadav a dynamic strokemaker
While Shubhankar Mishra also agreed with the fact that Suryakumar Yadav is a very dynamic batsman and a staunch strokemaker, he asked the KKR pacer what, according to him, made him a modern-day great.
The show host asked, “How do you think batsmen like him are able to develop these skills? Is he not afraid that the ball might hit him in the face or somewhere else?”
“He has practiced so much. I heard him say something during an interview, where he mentioned that earlier, when he came, he used to bat with traditional shots, but later he started developing these special shots.
“Then he felt the need to play some different shots and started playing these shots. He worked hard and his hard work paid off as he performed using his unique stroke play. After practicing so much, he can easily play them on the field,” the KKR fast bowler said.
Suryakumar Yadav’s promising IPL stats
Suryakumar Yadav started his IPL career with Mumbai Indians in 2012, but he played just one IPL match without scoring a single run. However, his prime stint came with the Kolkata Knight Riders between 2014 and 2017, when he played as a lower-order batsman.
He failed to make a comeback to the top order, but was immediately given a new role in the top order for Mumbai Indians in 2018. After having his best IPL season, Surya became a consistent run-scorer for them.
The two best seasons for the MI batsman came in 2023 and 2025, when the batsman excelled with the bat and scored 605 and 717 runs respectively. The batsman has also scored two centuries in IPL history.
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