You need unorthodox players like Suryakumar Yadav in T20s: Gautam Gambhir

Former India opener Gautam Gambir feels the team needs unorthodox players like Suryakumar Yadav, especially in the T20 format. Ever since Suryakumar made his debut earlier this year, he has played admirably well, In his four T20Is so far, he has scored 139 runs at 46.33, which includes two fifties in three innings.

While Surya made it to the 15-member squad for the T20 World Cup, 2021, his Mumbai teammate Shreyas Iyer was named one of the travelling reserves. "Surya is a completely different class, as compared to Shreyas Iyer, he is much more versatile, he is much more unorthodox as well. In T20 cricket, you need people that are unorthodox; you want people who can hit that ball in different areas, and that is what T20 cricket is all about," Gambhir said on the Star Sports.

"He can lap you, he can late cut you, he can hit you over extra cover; he’s got all the shots, especially at No.4, because sometimes No.4 is the most tricky position to bat in T20 cricket, probably the easiest is the top three, but No.4, because you might be in when you have lost two early wickets and you still want to continue the momentum," 2007 World T20 winner Gambhir added.

Further comparing Surya and Shreyas, Gambhir noted, "Sometimes you come into the middle, when you have got what... 130 for 2, and you have got to continue with the momentum. So, Surya's got both kinds of change, which probably Shreyas Iyer doesn't have."

"And again, you have to be mindful that he is coming after a serious injury and you never know what kind of a form he would be in the second leg of IPL as well. So, they've gone with someone, who has done really well, since he has gone into international cricket," the former India opener added.

India kick start their T20 World Cup 2021 campaign against Pakistan on October 24 in Dubai.