With India's opener against Australia just five days away, there is a great deal of speculation what the batting composition would be.
As the recently concluded ODI series between India and Australia showed, the role of Suryakumar Yadav in India's fortunes becomes critical in game scenarios.
GAMECHANGING ABILITY
Irrespective of what the match situation is and how the top order fares, Suryakumar has the ability to turn the game on its head with his batting style that is all his own.
With his ability to play all around the wicket and manufacture shots out of nowhere, the Mumbai man is a dangerous batter for the opposition as he can inject pressure right back at them.
There has been constant criticism about his inability to adapt to the 50-over format despite being the absolute master of the T20 version of the game.
Questions were being asked about his technique and temperament to play the ODI format.
Suryakumar gave a befitting reply to all his naysayers with two superlative knocks in the first and second one-dayers against Australia.
In the first match, he scored a quickfire 50 while India were chasing to do the finishing job while in the second Suryakumar was at his marauding best smashing 72 off just 37 balls with six fours and six sixes.
ANSWERS CRITICS IN STYLE
It is this very game-changing X-Factor that he brings to the table that distinguishes Suryakumar from other batsmen in the Indian middle order.
In recent days, the likes of Ravi Shastri and Harbhajan Singh have voiced their vocal support in favour of Suryakumar.
The former India coach stated that Suryakumar should definitely be part of the Indian XI and if there is a toss up between Shreyas Iyer and him, it would only be decided on the basis of conditions.
On great batting tracks, Suryakumar is a must have and that is the view of this writer too.
My view is very clear: Play Suryakumar Yadav in all the crucial games against top teams as he is a big match player with a big match temperament.
Against Pakistan he is yet to score a big knock and which means he is due for one. The Indian team management should unleash him in Ahmedabad at a time when he can inflict maximum damage on the arch-rivals.
Whether he plays against Australia or not is something we will have to wait and watch, but given the blazing knocks he played against them so recently, 'SKY' should get the nod.
The Indian top order with Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill and Virat Kohli is solid and the middle order with KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan is getting better.
However, the icing on the cake will be Suryakumar's batswing if he fires throughout the World Cup.
