Suryakumar Yadav in action during IPL 2026© AFP
It has been a horrible IPL 2026 campaign for Suryakumar Yadav till now. The Mumbai Indians star batter has faced a lot of criticism from both fans and experts for not contributing to his team’s cause, as the five-time champions find themselves towards the bottom end of the table with 3 wins from 9 matches. The Indian cricket team T20I captain has scored just 195 runs in 10 matches at a strike rate of under 150. The batter, who is well known for his 360-degree batting style, has also been dismissed due to his risky shots during the ongoing competition, and that prompted former India batter Mohammad Kaif to give him simple advice. Kaif believes that Suryakumar needs to reassess his style and come up with a ‘Plan B’.
“This is a shot that Suryakumar Yadav usually plays and he became famous for it. People used to say, ‘Don’t bowl him leg-side, he’ll hit it into the stands.’ But now I’m seeing him getting caught off that shot as well. So he is slightly struggling with form right now. He is not able to score consistently and that’s where the idea of a Plan B comes in. As I said, Plan B means you need to go back to the nets and work on your technique,” Kaif said on Star Sports.
Kaif pointed out that opposition bowlers have figured out Suryakumar’s batting style and have targeted the patterns to dismiss him. As a result, it has become extremely important for the star batter to evolve and adapt to the changing situation.
“Bowlers are now coming prepared against him, knowing exactly where they can trap him. So he will need to adapt a bit. Can he play the side-down shot? Can he play through the covers? Can he target mid-off? So he will have to develop a plan going forward. And I can understand it’s been a very poor IPL for him. He will be disappointed because he is one of the heroes of the IPL. When Mumbai wins, his bat usually fires. But this year there has been a shortfall in his batting,” he added.
Featured Video Of The Day
Tushar Deshpande’s Brilliant Final Act Ensures Thrilling Win For RR Over Gujarat Titans
Topics mentioned in this article