It’s been an unpredictable journey for Yuvraj Singh since he came to the international arena against Australia in Adelaide, keeping Indian fans guessing every time he walks to bat.
When the southpaw’s name was included in this T20 season, including the World Cup, Yuvraj was expected to contribute with his rich batting skills.
But Yuvi was fulfilling the responsibilities in another way.
Against Sri Lanka, he opened his account with a straight six, but was deceived by a heated, short-pitched delivery from Dushmantha Chameera.
In Mirpur, on a green-top surface, he approached the innings like a pure, experienced batsman. It looked like he was just setting himself for a big innings, but his sweep shot didn’t have the elevation. Shakib Al-hasan’s look after picking up the wicket clearly indicates the ball was meant to be hit for six. But Yuvi’s sweep sixes over the midwicket didn’t come to the party.
Against arch-rivals Pakistan, Mohammed Amir single-handedly dismissed the Indian top order, so Yuvraj showed his experience to build a strong partnership with Virat Kohli.
Facing 32 deliveries and scoring 14 runs at a strike rate of 43 isn’t a fair reflection of Yuvraj’s calibre. If he had suddenly lost his wicket, India would have been in serious trouble. He just paced the innings very well – unlike Suresh Raina, who just threw his wicket away – and made sure the team didn’t lose another wicket.
Yuvraj was really careful in his approach in these three matches, batting more like an ODI batsman than a T20 specialist. He was asked to bat in a pressure situation, when the team was really struggling and need of a solid partnership, so he rotated the strike.
Still, he looked to struggle against a quality bowling line-up. The conditions and the pitches should have favoured him, but his form has left captain MS Dhoni defending him.
Quick runs are mandatory in T20 – you can’t expect the top order batsmen to finish the match everytime. Yet Yuvraj is struggling in the format he won the 2007 ICC Player of the Year award.
Or is he is playing a mature knock, the kind that’s needed to win games?
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