"Complete entertainment for the crowd" - Suryakumar Yadav claims he learned a lot from Ashutosh Sharma's blitz in PBKS vs MI IPL 2024 match

Mumbai Indians (MI) veteran batter Suryakumar Yadav has hailed Punjab Kings (PBKS) sensation Ashutosh Sharma for his sensational knock of 61 off just 28 balls during their IPL 2024 fixture in Mullanpur on Thursday, April 18.

Walking out to bat at 77/6, Ashutosh turned the game on its head and almost snatched victory from the jaws of defeat until he was present at the crease. Suryakumar hailed the Punjab batter for expressing himself and entertaining the crowd.

Speaking to Tilak Varma in a video posted by the IPL, here's what Suryakumar Yadav had to say about Ashutosh Sharma's innings:

"Ashutosh also played a brilliant knock. It was complete entertainment for the crowd. Got to learn a lot from him on how to bat in such situations and thankfully we are going from here with two points. Hopefully, we can continue the momentum."

Suryakumar had a crucial partnership with Tilak Varma that helped MI post a mammoth 192/7 in their 20 overs on a tricky surface. Tilak scored a fine 34* off just 18 balls. Praising him, SKY added:

"As soon as Tilak Varma came to the crease, I thought I had a spring in my step (Tilak laughs). I was a bit stuck for 7-8 balls and he got me out of trouble. To play on such a pitch with a strike rate of 200 is no mean feat but people forget such innings."

Suryakumar Yadav top-scored for Mumbai Indians with 78 off just 53 balls and played the anchor role that the visitors needed on a two-paced pitch.

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Suryakumar Yadav on his celebration

After reaching his fifty, Suryakumar Yadav was seen pointing to someone in the MI dugout and taking a deep breath. On being asked the reason behind that by Tilak, SKY explained how much the half-century meant to him and how Mumbai had a plan for one batter to bat deep.

On this, he stated:

"Some innings mean a lot more to you and this was one of those. I had to grind and dig deep on a tricky pitch. So I took a deep breath, tapped the logo and dedicated the fifty to those who were sitting in the dugout and clapping."

Mumbai Indians will be thrilled to win the game by nine runs and get two crucial points to make a move up to seventh place in the IPL 2024 points table.