Indian batter Suryakumar Yadav was praised for his skills by Afghanistan’s great all-rounder Rashid Khan. The latest ICC men’s T20I rankings, which are currently dominated by Pakistan captain Babar Azam, now place Suryakumar in second place due to his strong batting performance.

On August 28, India will face off against Pakistan in Group A of the multi-nation tournament. The 31-year-old batter is expected to be crucial to India’s chances of winning the competition.

“He is a brave player, the way he has performed in IPL and for the Indian team, he has shown his skill and talent. He is one player who can score big runs in the Asia Cup, he is one player who is always positive and he always stays busy at the crease. He always tries to keep performing for the team, bowling to him in the IPL used to be tough. It was healthy competition, I am so excited to bowl to him when he steps out to the field for India,”

Rashid told Pakistani journalist Sawera Pasha in a video uploaded on her YouTube channel.

Ricky Ponting, a former captain of Australia, recently compared Suryakumar to AB de Villiers, claiming the Indian has a 360-degree game like the legendary South African.

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“Surya (Yadav) scores 360 degrees around the ground, a bit like what AB de Villiers did when he was in his actual prime. The lap shots, the late cuts, you know, the ramps over the keeper’s head. He can hit down the ground,”

Ponting had said on The ICC Review.