Former Indian batsman Aakash Chopra has expressed confidence that Suryakumar Yadav could become the best T20 player if he maintains his current form. Chopra defended Suryakumar Yadav from criticism for not scoring in the 2023 World Cup final.

Suryakumar Yadav smashed his fourth T20I century against South Africa in the third match in Johannesburg on Thursday. Yadav scored 100 runs off 56 balls, including eight sixes and seven fours. He led the team to a 106-run victory, leveling the three-match series at 1-1.

Team India rarely loses in do-or-die matches – Aakash Chopra

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra said that it is just a matter of a couple more years before Suryakumar Yadav can be declared the best in the T20 format. He stressed the importance of focusing on the present and not dwelling on past events.

“If Surya continues to play like this, then it is just a matter of one or two years that you will have to declare that he is the best in the T20 format,” Chopra said.

“Team India rarely loses do-or-die matches. He was reading that as soon as you start praising someone, he reminds them of November 19th. Even in the third T20I, it was more or less the same after Surya’s performance.”

So, that’s why I have to say that it’s not worth holding on to the past at the cost of losing the present. The formats were different and it was not just Surya who got eliminated in the finals. When he is now scoring runs, I think it is unfair to ask why he didn’t score in the final,” Chopra added.

Suryakumar Yadav is the best T20 batsman – Aakash Chopra

Aakash Chopra pointed out that Suryakumar Yadav has racked up T20I centuries in different countries. The cricketer-turned-commentator dismissed the idea of ​​Suryakumar being a flat-track bully or a godfather of statistics.

“All of Surya’s T20I hundreds have reached different countries. Therefore, it cannot even be said that he is a flat bully or a godfather of statistics. India won the third T20I thanks to him. Jaiswal also played very well at the top. He is really making a statement by being a part of the team in all formats,” Chopra added.

“In my opinion, right now, he is the best T20 batsman. There is no one better than him today. If he continues to play like this for the next two years, including the 2024 T20 World Cup, he can retire as the best T20 batsman when he decides to quit the game,” Chopra concluded.

Suryakumar Yadav has joined Rohit Sharma and Glenn Maxwell in scoring the most T20I centuries. In 2023, the right-handed batsman amassed an impressive total of 733 runs in 18 T20I matches, with two centuries and five half-centuries.

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