"The things that he does I wouldn’t even dream of doing" - Glenn Phillips in awe of Suryakumar Yadav

New Zealand middle-order batter Glenn Phillips hailed Suryakumar Yadav's gameplay and his manipulation of the field. While the right-handed batter hopes to emulate Yadav, he admits that it seems impossible.

Yadav is so far the highest run-getter in T20I cricket this year, amassing 1040 runs in 29 games at 43.33 with a strike rate of 185.71. The 32-year-old, who debuted in T20Is in 2021, was also the third-highest run-getter in the T20 World Cup 2022.

Speaking ahead of the second T20I against India in Mount Maunganui, Phillips said he is in awe of Yadav's wristwork that allows him to hit boundaries in awkward areas. As quoted by Stuff.co.nz, the 25-year-old stated:

"He’s absolutely incredible. The things that he does I wouldn’t even dream of doing. I would love to try but we have very different games. The wrist strength that he’s got to be able to hit balls for six in extremely awkward areas is a talent you rarely see."

The past six months have seen Yadav become the lynchpin of India's T20I line-up. He stood tall as the Indian batting unit crumbled against South Africa in the World Cup game, scoring a quick-fire 68 off 40 to give India a respectable total.

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Glenn Phillips predicts Suryakumar Yadav to score heavily in New Zealand

Glenn Phillips. (Image Credits: Getty)

Glenn Phillips also believes that shorter boundaries in New Zealand should be favorable for the Indian batter, given his success in the big grounds of Australia. He added:

"I’ve got my strengths and he’s got his and we go about our jobs in different ways. I could easily see Yadav’s strike rate being even higher here than it was in Aussie, with the slightly smaller grounds and the pitches very similar, potentially a bit bouncier with a bit more grass on them. It’s going to be very interesting what sort of strike rates we see here."

Persistent showers washed out the first T20I in Wellington, and the second game will take place on Sunday.