"One day you score a hundred the next day a zero", that was perhaps the only philosophical statement that came from Player of the Tournament Yuvraj Singh after India lifted the 2011 World Cup.
Yuvraj was right though. Over the past couple years he has been in and out of the ODI squad - sometimes because of injury and at other times because of lack of form and question marks over his fitness. But Yuvraj has made this edition of the World Cup his own. With 15 wickets at an average of 25 a piece, he's made the transition from a part-time bowler who pitches in with an over or two, to a bowler that the whole team and now nation relies on to pick up wickets and break partnerships. As a batsman he has scored 362 runs at an average of 86. He has been able to shoulder the responsibility of taking the team through to a big total or dealing with the pressure of a chase. He's always been electric in the field and this tournament saw him save crucial runs for his team, despite a still very visible paunch.
In short, Yuvraj Singh has matured. He was always talented and now he chose the game's biggest stage to demonstrate that he's ready to think about his game, his role and his team. The four Man of the Match awards show that the experience of 11 years of international cricket is being put to good use.
Yuvraj entered the post-match press conference in a jubilant mood, shouting out badhaiyaan' (congratulations) to waiting journalists. After India's quarter-final win in Ahmedabad, he had stated that he was playing the World Cup for a certain 'special person' and that he would reveal the person's name if India was in the final on April 2nd.
April 2nd it was and Yuvraj told the amused media, "Really sorry to disappoint you all - it's not my girlfriend - it's for Sachin Tendulkar. I wanted to win the cup for him."
Youvraj also gave credit to his former skipper Sourav Ganguly, "When I started Sourav was captain and he supported me a lot" he said. He also claimed that current captain MS Dhoni has supported him when he's been up and down and that has helped him.
Dhoni in turn revealed how the anxiety and desire to perform well had led to Yuvi vomiting in the dressing room and has also prevented him from sleeping well at night over the course of the World Cup.
Yuvraj was right though. Over the past couple years he has been in and out of the ODI squad - sometimes because of injury and at other times because of lack of form and question marks over his fitness. But Yuvraj has made this edition of the World Cup his own. With 15 wickets at an average of 25 a piece, he's made the transition from a part-time bowler who pitches in with an over or two, to a bowler that the whole team and now nation relies on to pick up wickets and break partnerships. As a batsman he has scored 362 runs at an average of 86. He has been able to shoulder the responsibility of taking the team through to a big total or dealing with the pressure of a chase. He's always been electric in the field and this tournament saw him save crucial runs for his team, despite a still very visible paunch.
In short, Yuvraj Singh has matured. He was always talented and now he chose the game's biggest stage to demonstrate that he's ready to think about his game, his role and his team. The four Man of the Match awards show that the experience of 11 years of international cricket is being put to good use.
Yuvraj entered the post-match press conference in a jubilant mood, shouting out badhaiyaan' (congratulations) to waiting journalists. After India's quarter-final win in Ahmedabad, he had stated that he was playing the World Cup for a certain 'special person' and that he would reveal the person's name if India was in the final on April 2nd.
April 2nd it was and Yuvraj told the amused media, "Really sorry to disappoint you all - it's not my girlfriend - it's for Sachin Tendulkar. I wanted to win the cup for him."
Youvraj also gave credit to his former skipper Sourav Ganguly, "When I started Sourav was captain and he supported me a lot" he said. He also claimed that current captain MS Dhoni has supported him when he's been up and down and that has helped him.
Dhoni in turn revealed how the anxiety and desire to perform well had led to Yuvi vomiting in the dressing room and has also prevented him from sleeping well at night over the course of the World Cup.
Yuvraj Singh was named Player of the Tournament by a 5-member panel comprising: David Richardson (ICC General Manager - Cricket and former South Africa wicketkeeper), Anand Vasu (Deputy Editor of Sports Illustrated), Aleem Dar (Member of the Emirates Elite Panel of ICC Umpires and Umpire of the Year 2009 and 2010), Ranjan Madugalle (ICC Chief Match Referee and former Sri Lanka batsman) and Christopher Martin-Jenkins (journalist and broadcaster).
No comments:
Post a Comment