(Credit Screengrab)
Catching wins matches, and sometimes tournaments. Suryakumar Yadav’s incredible catch of David Miller in the T20 World Cup final decisively tilted the title in India’s favor.
In a tense moment, with South Africa needing 16 runs off the final over bowled by Hardik Pandya, Miller struck a full toss towards long-off. Initially destined to clear the boundary, Suryakumar sprinted across, managed to catch the ball just inside the ropes, but realizing he was losing balance, he smartly flicked the ball back into play before regaining his footing and completing the catch.
Miller’s dismissal, crucially as the last recognized batsman, virtually assured India of victory.
Reflecting on the catch, Suryakumar shared that in that split second, all he could see was the T20 World Cup trophy, and he seized it.
“I really don’t know what was going through my mind. All I could see was the World Cup flying away and I just latched on to it,” Suryakumar was quoted as saying by The Times of India.
Four decades ago, Kapil Dev’s iconic running catch to dismiss Viv Richards in the 1983 ODI World Cup final became etched in cricketing history, marking a pivotal moment for Indian cricket.
Roger Binny, now BCCI president and a member of Kapil’s victorious squad, believes that Suryakumar’s catch in the T20 World Cup final equals the brilliance of his former captain’s legendary effort.
“Kapil’s catch was magnificent in its own right,” Binny said. “He had to run back, keep an eye on the ball and complete the catch, which he did with great ease. This was a case of incredible athleticism, where Surya was dealing with the variable of the boundary rope. We would have probably lost if he had dropped it, just as it was with Kapil’s catch. These two catches are on a par.”
