South Africa’s David Miller, usually a master of finding runs himself, found himself at a loss for words when describing the challenge of bowling to Suryakumar Yadav. The Indian batsman’s 55-ball century in the third T20I, a whirlwind of seven fours and eight sixes, left Miller baffled and in awe.

“He’s a special player,” David Miller acknowledged in the post-match press conference. But what truly stumped him was Suryakumar’s ability to hit all around the ground, defying conventional field placements. “It was difficult to kind of set a field to him,” Miller confessed.

The numbers speak volumes. After a cautious start, Suryakumar exploded in the second half, smashing 73 runs in just 31 balls. His onslaught began with three sixes and a four off Andile Phehlukwayo in the 13th over, culminating in his century in the final over.

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Miller likened Suryakumar’s batting to a puzzle, a kaleidoscope of shots that defied prediction. “He just manages to hit all around the ground,” David Miller pointed out. “He can lap, scoop, play straight, and hit you over cow corner and over cover.” Such a complete arsenal makes him a nightmare for any bowler.

Facing such an enigma, David Miller admitted to resorting to unorthodox tactics. “You kind of try to double-bluff at times and go outside of a normal plan,” he said. But even these desperate measures couldn’t contain Suryakumar’s 360° assault. South Africa’s response, in stark contrast, was a disappointing 95 all out in just 13.5 overs. “We are good enough to play better than that,” David Miller lamented. “It was a par score. It was a really good wicket, but then things changed.”

The wicket, Miller explained, played differently in the second innings, offering more bounce and making scoring difficult. However, he refused to use it as an excuse.

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“It wasn’t the same wicket as in the first innings,” he conceded. “It is difficult to go at 10 an over when the ball is keeping low, but we should have been good enough to adapt and we weren’t.”

As the series moves to the one-day format, South Africa will have to find a way to solve the Suryakumar puzzle and rediscover their own batting prowess. Otherwise, they risk being outclassed by an India riding on the back of their enigmatic batting maestro.