His 22-ball 61 propelled India to 237/3, a mountain too steep for South Africa to scale, as they finished 17 runs short, handing India a comfortable series win. The scoreboard may give the impression that South Africa outran India, but the visitors were rarely in the hunt. Only Miller’s century and Quinton de Kock’s unbeaten 69 reduced the deficit.
Yadav was at the forefront of India’s recent victories, as he has been in the past. Some batsmen can make batting look effortless, while others can make it look spectacular. A few others, such as Yadav these days, make it appear absurd. The world had better get used to his ridiculous T20 genius. A match-defining Yadav knock has become an inevitability in modern times, regardless of who bowls, where the ground is, how the conditions are, or what the situation is.
Indian cricket lauds its catalysts. Sunil Gavaskar was the catalyst in Tests, Sachin Tendulkar was the inspiration in ODIs, and Yadav was the catalyst in T20s. Others had come before them, and others would come after them, but they were the single most powerful force for change.
Prior to Yadav, India had match-winning batsman in this format, ranging from MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh to Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Two other batsmen from his county had 1000 T20I runs faster than him. But none has had as much of an impact on a team as Yadav has since his debut last year.
Even without him, India’s batting appears unbeatable in its current form. But Yadav makes them appear unbeatable. He is not only India’s Mr 360, but also its Mr Invincible.
