Yuvraj Singh

March 4, 2007

Tall, handsome and an established member of the Indian cricket team, Yuvraj Singh is one of the most eligible bachelors today. At 25, he is already a veteran, having played more than 150+ ODIs and is being touted as a future Indian captain.

The son of former Indian bowler, Yograj Singh, Yuvraj wouldnâ€™t even have been a cricketer but for his father insistence and dreams for young Yuvraj. His first love was roller-skating and his mother also supported him in the endeavour. But his father Yograj, famous for playing dominating roles in Punjabi cinema, and himself just able to play one match for India, had the final say and forced Yuvraj to shift to cricket. And the rest, as they say, is historyâ€¦

A prodigy well spotted, this left-handed batsman turned out to be a masterful stroke player, blessed with exceptional timing, precision placing and the temperament to play long innings. He demonstrated this quality of his, when as captain of the Punjab U-19 squad; he scored a mammoth 358 in the finals of the Cooch Behar trophy. A part of the successful Indian U-19 world cup team, he caught the attention of one and all in the tournament, and scored heavily throughout the tournament.

A generously gifted striker of the ball, he made his debut in the Mini World Cup in Nairobi in 2000, as part of the new youthful side looking to shine through the dark clouds of the match fixing scandal. And in only his 2nd match, he made a messianic entry into world cricket, scoring a match winning 84 to knock out the world champions Australia out of the Cup. His brilliance wasnâ€™t limited to the bat alone, as he quickly established himself as a prolific fielder, with swift feet, sharp reflexes and lethal direct hits. He has made the position of Point his own and lifts the entire fielding department with his exuberance and desire. Yuvraj soon mustered up other good performances, his ability to tackle pace bowling easily all too evident. It was his inability to read spin that hounded Yuvraj though, even leading to a brief exclusion from the side. But he returned stronger and wiser and cemented his place in the Indian middle order. From early on, his influence on the squad was undeniable, exemplified by the amazing statistic that India won each match in which he scored his first 10 half centuries.

With each inning, Yuvraj grew in confidence, treating Indian fans to many memorable innings, including the amazing partnership with Mohammed Kaif for a then world record run chase to win the Natwest trophy. It was a further 15 months later that Yuvraj made his test debut in front of his home fans. An incredible century on a green top wicket in his third test signaled he was ready for the longer version of the game as well. Since then, he has played 16 more tests. But it was in 2005-06 that Yuvraj Singh hit the form of his life, garnering best player awards in 3 consecutive series and breaking into the top 10 batsmen of the world in the ICC batsmen rating. His performances earned him a nomination for ICC ODI player of the year as well. A freak injury playing kho-kho followed, and put doubts over his fitness in time for the world cup. But he recovered a lot sooner than expected and returned to hit another fluent 95 in Indiaâ€™s final match before the world cup â€™07.

Yuvraj adds to his value by bowling an orthodox left arm spin which may get crucial breakthroughs. Off field, he is known to be a colorful character, with numerous brand endorsements and is often found on Page 3 thanks to his relationship with actress Kim Sharma.

The gifted stroke maker has matured to finishing games with clinical precision. The legendary Sunil Gavaskar once commented that the reason why Yuvraj made it and his father didnâ€™t, despite both of them being blessed with talent, was the fact that Yuvraj has the focused aggression and the guidance to take him all the way. Yuvraj has the longing to go all the way that is found rarely. The future looks bright for this â€˜Punjab da puttarâ€™, whether he delivers though remains to be seen. Hereâ€™s wishing many more hours of enjoyment, courtesy his prodigious blade to every cricket fan.

Yuvraj Singh

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