Surya Kumar Yadav joins elite list of Fastest 50 scorers for Indian in ODI cricket

Indian explosive batter Surya Kumar Yadav on Sunday (September 24) joined the list of fastest Indians to score a 50 in ODIs. Nicknamed SKY, the right-handed batter scored a quickfire 72 off 37 against Australia in during the 2nd ODI (of the 3-match series), here at the Holkar Stadium in Madhya Pradesh.

It was a very important knock from Surya’s perspective who required an inning like this to gain some positive momentum before the World Cup. He is a part of the 15-man squad for the CWC next month but he is not a guaranteed starter.

Match after match he is Silencing his critics and Haters 👀
The crowd here in Indore has been treated with Signature SKY brilliance! 💥💥
6-6-6-6 💥!!!!#INDvAUS #SuryakumarYadav pic.twitter.com/oERoPVebrw

— INDEEVAR A R ✷ (@INDEEVARAR) September 24, 2023

As a matter of fact, when India faced Australia earlier this year in a 3-match ODI series right after the Border-Gavaskar trophy, Surya Kumar Yadav registered 3-Golden ducks in a row. Plenty of speculations surrounded him about his temperament in the 50-over format.

6 months later against the same opponents, Surya now has 2 consecutive half-centuries. Though many would bother to argue that he has not faced Mitchell Starc yet, someone who led to Surya’s 3 straight golden ducks. In the 1st ODI, Surya scored 51 off 52 in the 2nd ODI he bettered his score to 72 off 37. That will not just give him good confidence but it will also give the Indian management another option in the middle order.

Meanwhile, Surya with his 50, joined the list of Fastest 50 scorers for India in ODI cricket as he completed a 24-ball half-century. Here are 5 other players who have done so before Surya.

1. Ajit Agarkar: Don’t be surprised to see the current Indian cheif selectors name in this list as he is the fastest batter to score a Half-century for India in ODIs. Back in 2000, Ajit Agarkar scored a 21 ball 50 against Zimbabwe.
2. Kapil Dev: The man who delivered India their first Cricket World Cup trophy in 1983, finds himself below Agarkar as he scored a 22-ball half century against West Indies.
3. Virender Sehwag: India’s former explosive opener from Najafgarh, Viru or Virender Sehwag is third on this elite list. He played his entire career with a sublime hand-eye co-ordination, scored 8273 runs in 245 ODI innings. Sehwag is level with Kapil Dev as the former also scored a 22-ball 50 against Kenya in 2001.
4. Rahul Dravid: India head coach and formerly known as “The Wall” (during his playing days), finds himself tied with Kapil Dev and Virender Sehwag. Dravid chose New Zealand as the opponent to score a 22-ball fifty in 2003.
5. Yuvraj Singh: Concluding the list is Yuvraj Singh. The former left-hand batter before smacking 6 off 6, before helping India win the 2007 T20 World Cup and the 2011 Cricket World Cup, scored 50 off 22 balls against Bangladesh in 2007.