'Tried to Copy Some of His Shots But...': MI Youngster Nehal Wadhera Learning From Suryakumar Yadav

For the second successive occasion, Mumbai Indians promoted Nehal Wadhera in the batting order and the youngster didn’t disappoint. While the headlines will deservedly be dominated by Suryakumar Yadav for his stunning assault on Royal Challengers Bangalore bowlers, Wadhera quietly polished his reputation with a second fifty in a row in IPL 2023.

Against Chennai Super Kings, Wadhera batted at no. 3 and scored a solid 64 to help MI finish with a respectable total at Chepauk. On Tuesday, as MI lost two quick wickets in the chase of 200, Wadhera joined Suryakumar in the sixth over walking in to bat at no. 4 after the dismissal of his captain Rohit Sharma.

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And the pair added 140 runs for the third wicket to bring MI close to the target.

Suryakumar would exit with MI needing eight more runs to win after a whirlwind 35-ball 83 but Wadhera was there to finish the job as he belted the winning six which also took him to his half-century.

The 22-year-old is relishing batting up the order.

“It was fun batting up the order. Got an opportunity (again), got back-to-back fifties. Happy for that but more happy my team won. Wankhede is such a ground where 200, as you saw in the previous game, we can chase 200-plus. So we had that confidence, I had that within me that if I bat to the end I can finish the game,” Wadhera told the broadcasters after the match.

Wadhera revealed he’s trying to copy some of the extraordinary shots Suryakumar plays with ease.

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“Surya bhai is a top-quality player, I tried to copy some of his shots but I cannot. He was saying ‘just keep playing, just keep playing and we’ll finish the game early’. The previous game, I played a scoop, which I didn’t used to play, so I learned from him,” Wadhera said.

With their six-wicket win, MI have jumped from eighth to the third spot in the standings and will next face Gujarat Titans on Friday.

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