5 reasons Why Suresh Raina is one of the best T-20 player.

For a while now,we all have saw Sunil Gavaskar say or write in his articles that Suresh Raina is the best reader of the T-20 format in the world. And Mr.Gavaskar is rarely wrong in his statements as Raina indeed is the best player of the shortest format of the game. Here, at TheCrickBlog we decode Suresh Raina's performance in T-20 matches and give you 5 reasons why Suresh Raina is possibly the best player of T-20s.

[post_ad]

1. Consistency

Image : sports.ndtv.com

In the T-20 format you dont expect a batsman to score consistently as the format is very short. An innings here and there happens with every batsman. But Raina is very consistent in this format as he has those big hitting abilities. His average in T-20s is 33.12 which is great with respect to his batting performance and the situation of the match. He has hit 99 fours and 39 sixes. Great stats,aren't they? He has 3 fifties. He even has a century in this format. He has the ability to take the game away from the opposition in the space of only an over. Give him an over full of length balls and he would easily deposit each ball in the stands. There are definitely two Cs associated with him: Class and Consistency.

2. Finisher of the game.

Image : espncricinfo.com

Imagine this: 17 needed from 6 balls when you are batting. It would undoubtedly seem very difficult unless you have a batsman like Suresh Raina. Same situation was there when India played Australia in the 3rd T-20. Raina along Yuvraj scripted a historic win to clean sweep the Aussies. He played a blinder scoring 49* off just 25 balls and hit the winning runs. He has knack of playing the role of a finisher when India chases a huge score in T-20s. There are many performances where he has finished matches and helped India to win matches. So yes,he is the best finisher of game in this format. He has lent his finishing touch while playing IPL for Chennai Super Kings.

3. Enjoys the game.

Image : cricketcountry.com

We all have seen on television and all the fans might agree to this that Suresh Raina is one of the most animated players on the field. He is always there to encourage bowlers when the bowler is not in his full swing and going for runs. He is very calm yet he shows the excitement about the game on his face. He is the first one to run towards the bowler and congratulate when the bowler has taken a wicket. He is the first one to celebrate the success of the team. Even when India is on the losing side he doesn't look distraught and sad,he always has that cheerful smile on his face. During a match when he was fielding at slips he could be heard mimicking players and making funny voices through the stump mic. He is a good singer and often sings during matches. This player is really a character,isn't he? This quote by him sums this up :

"Celebration is big for me. From my younger days when I used to win mementos while playing,I always believed in sharing my success. It has to be there. It lifts the energy level of the entire side when you are positive and vocal when a wicket falls."

Also Read: 10 Inspirational Quotes by Suresh Raina

4. Fielding Abilities.

Image : sportskeeda.com

Everyone knows that Suresh Raina is a great fielder. He saves 10-15 runs in every match while fielding. Even if he would have a bad day with the bat,he compensates that by saving runs on the field and helps India defend totals. And this is very important when it comes to T-20s as every run scored is important. He even take those breathtaking catches and makes difficult catches look easy. He is immensely accurate with respect to direct hits and can run out the batsman from nowhere. We can constantly hear him talking how fielding can make a huge difference on the outcome of the match. He seems to be serious with the saying "Catches win Matches" as he rarely drops a catch.

5. IPL Career

Image : india.com

You all must be wondering that why haven't I spoke about his splendid IPL career in the above reasons because IPL is itself one of the biggest reason why Suresh Raina is a dynamic player in T-20s. He has played superbly for his team Chennai Super Kings right from 2008 till 2015 and guess what he hasn't missed any game for CSK in IPL. This gives us an indication about his seriousness regarding his performance in IPL. He is the highest run getter of IPL of all time with 3699 runs with an average of 33.53. He constantly features in the Orange Cap holder list and in the list of players to watch out for before every IPL season. No one can forget that unbelievable 87 runs off just 25 balls against Kings Eleven Punjab in the playoffs in 2014. CSK were seriously in chance winning of the match whilst chasing a 200+ score thanks to Raina's innings. But as soon as he departed CSK started to wither away and eventually lost. This innings was one of many wonderful innings from Raina. Now he will be playing for Gujarat Lions in IPL 2016 and they would hope that Raina continues his stellar form.

"My job is to perform,enjoy cricket and thank God for whatever he has given me" -Suresh Raina

We all hope that he continues to perform and enjoy his game. With the T-20 World Cup approaching,all the teams should plan to tackle Raina as he would be ready to feast on those length balls and deposit them into the stands. All the Best Suresh Raina!