Ahead of his team’s crucial semi-final clash of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup against India, star England all-rounder Moeen Ali heaped high praise on India batter Suryakumar Yadav, calling him the “best in the world”.

India finished at the top of Group 2 in the Super 12s, setting up a semi-final clash against England in Adelaide on November 10. Throughout the course of the tournament, middle-order batter Suryakumar Yadav has been seen in prime form, smashing three fifties in the five games he has played so far.

“He is an amazing player, I do feel like he is the best in the world. He has probably taken T20 cricket to another level,” Ali was quoted as saying by Sky Sports.

“I think he is the first of the players who come through, where you cannot bowl at him when he is playing well, it is very difficult and a weakness does not really stick out,” he added.

Suryakumar has aggregated 225 runs in this T20 World Cup so far and is averaging 75 while scoring at a mind-boggling strike-rate of 193.96. Not only that, he also became the first Indian and only the second player in the history of the game to score 1000 T20I runs in a calendar year.

English bowlers have already been at the receiving end of Suryakumar’s onslaught once when he played a magnificent knock of 117 from just 55 deliveries in a T20I against them ahead of this World Cup.

Moeen Ali got his wicket in that match and he also recalled his knock.

“He absolutely murdered me before I got him out. They still needed a lot of runs and he got them close. Thankfully, he was tired when I got him out – that’s how I got him, I think. But he played amazingly well, some of the shots he played were some of the best I have ever seen.”

Suryakumar will be hoping to carry his rich vein of form forward into the semi-final against England to help India through to the final. England, on the other hand, will be busy devising multiple plans to stop him from going on a rampage.