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Star India batter Suryakumar Yadav is celebrating his 33rd birthday on Thursday, September 14. He is currently in Sri Lanka, taking part in the 2023 Asia Cup. Suryakumar, who was born in Mumbai, was one of the senior and regular members of Mumbai Ranji team and captained the team for a shorter period.
Suryakumar made his international debut in March 2021 in a T20I series against England in Ahmedabad. He got the opportunity to bat in the fourth game of the series. He hit the first ball he faced in international cricket for a six and became the first Indian to do so in T20I cricket, and went on to score his maiden fifty. Courtesy of his performances, he was named in India’s ODI squad for the England series on the very next day.
In July 2022, Suryakumar scored his first-ever T20I century against England at Trent Bridge in Nottingham, amassing 117 off 55 deliveries. The 33-year-old became the 5th Indian cricketer to score a ton in T20I and the second one to reach the three-figure mark batting fourth or lower order. He added another feather to his cap in the same year, becoming the quickest batter to reach 1000-run mark in T20Is (573 balls).
The prolific batter scored the fourth fastest half-century by an Indian batter during an ICC T20 World Cup game, the fastest by an Indian batter at a T20 World Cup (25 balls). Given his excellence in the T20I format, Suryakumar ranked first in the ICC T20I batting rankings on October 30, 2022.
In November 2022, the Mumbaikar scored his second T20I century against New Zealand at Bay Oval in Mount Maunganui, becoming the second Indian to score two tons in the format in a calendar year, emulating Rohit Sharma’s record. In January 2023, he scored the second fastest century by an Indian batter in T20Is, the third of his career, reaching the mark in 45 balls against Sri Lanka. He broke KL Rahul’s record of second fastest T20I century. Additionally, he also won the ICC T20I Player of the year Award for his stand out performances in 2022.
In August 2023, he was selected for the T20I series against West Indies and named as the vice-captain for team India in the format. In the 3rd T20I match, he scored a gritty knock of 44-ball 83- run and helped India win the crucial game in the series. Seeing his show in T20Is so far, it is safe to say that the star batter has been ruling the format like a King since his debut.
