Suryakumar Yadav wins 6th POTS award, second-most in T20I history

Suryakumar Yadav clinched his sixth T20I Player of the Series award, equalling Wanindu Hasaranga and placing him second only to Virat Kohli. The skipper returned to form with 242 runs in India's 4-1 series win against New Zealand.

Suryakumar Yadav's Record-Breaking Performance

Indian T20I skipper Suryakumar Yadav earned his sixth Player of the Series (POTS) award in T20Is on Saturday and became the player with the second-most Player of the Series awards after India registered an emphatic 46-run win in the fifth and final T20I match of the series, which India won 4-1. Yadav is just behind his compatriot Virat Kohli, who has the most POTS awards (seven). He has joined Sri Lankan all-rounder Wanindu Hasaranga in the list, who also has six award wins in the shortest format.

Return to Form Ahead of World Cup

Following India's win over New Zealand in the fifth T20I, Yadav, who became the third Indian to complete 3,000 T20I runs, spoke on dealing with his lean patch of 23 innings before his half-century in the second match, saying that while the "sky was not blue for a year, he knew his time would come". In the biggest development before the T20 World Cup starting in February, Indian skipper Surya shook off a 23-inning slump, registering three fifties in the series and becoming the 'Player of the Series' in this final assignment before the marquee tournament with 242 runs at an average of 80.66, with a strike rate of above 196 and three fifties. Surya, the leader, also continued to shine bright as India headed into the WC without dropping a single series.

Speaking during the post-match presentation, Suryakumar said, "It has been a long year and a long wait for moments like this. I have always dreamed about when this time would come. I just kept doing the same things I had been doing over the last year and stuck to my routines. I knew I was not out of form, just out of runs. It has been a very good series, and going into the World Cup feeling like this is really special."

India vs New Zealand: 5th T20I Match Summary

India's Dominant Batting Display

In the match, India won the toss and chose to bat first. While Sanju fell to a single-digit score, Abhishek Sharma (30 in 16 balls, with four boundaries and two sixes) also fell, leaving India at 48/2. A 137-run stand between Ishan Kishan (103 in 43 balls, with six fours and 10 sixes) and skipper Suryakumar Yadav (63 in 30 balls, with four boundaries and six sixes) enthralled the audience. Later on, a cameo from Hardik Pandya (42 in 17 balls, with a four and four sixes) took India to 271/5 in 20 overs. Lockie Ferguson (2/41) was the pick of the bowlers for New Zealand, while Jacob Duffy (1/53), Kyle Jamieson (1/59) and Mitchell Santner (1/60) leaked runs.

New Zealand's Chase and India's Bowling Triumph

In the run-chase, after the Kiwis lost Tim Seifert early, a century stand between Allen (80 in 38 balls, with eight fours and six sixes) and Rachin Ravindra (30 in 17 balls, with two fours and two sixes) threatened to make India sweat. However, Arshdeep Singh (5/51) and Axar Patel (3/33) ripped apart the Kiwi middle-order, and they were skittled out for 225 runs after being 191/9 at one point. (ANI)

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