Yuvraj Singh

1999

Yuveraj Singh was not an unfamiliar name, when he was selected for the ICC Nairobi Tournament.I had followed his performances in the Domestic League, and specially in the Under 19 World Cup.Though I had reckoned him as a long term prospect, I was thoroughly surprised on his selection.I thought it was too early as he had not done enough work in the domestic scenario to merit his place in the National side.I thought he would be the bench boy of the series, and would be soon forgotten by one and all.Another one season fella....

2003

Thanks to Azhar & Mouthshut.com, I had to set my mind rolling over the 10 Best ODI batsman.I was very specific on picking up a young batsman in the current lot, who would go a long way in the future.I thought it would be a daunting task, but to my astonishment, I could only think of two complete cricketers of the next generation.Off the two(Ramnaresh Sarwan & Yuveraj Singh), Yuvi got the nod for his excellent fielding abilities, a great success record, and for taking the task to the opposition with the scantest of regards to the repute of the opponents.I really believe that Yuveraj is the fututre for not only Indian Cricket, but also World Cricket.You cannot leave out this lad, who was hailed by the great ’’Jimmy’’ Amarnath for his batting, and heralded by the great Jonty Rhodes for his fielding.Definetely, Yuveraj has come to stay...

1999-2003

I was completeluy taken aback when Yuvi was preferred over Sriram(I had a soft corner for Sriram, as he hails from my state and has worked very hard in the domestic, as always).But I have a great belief in ganguly’s choices, and I would never complain about his gut preferences.When I saw the Indian batsmen make a mess out of the match against Aussies, I thought the Dooms Day was spelt.All the same, I was waiting to see the reaction of this young boy Yuveraj Singh.I was quite astonished to see this guy walk in unperturbed and meet the Ugly Aussie eye to eye.The way he slammed the famed Aussie bowling line up all over the stadium, enroute to his unforgettable 84 was a total delight.That knock of his and the subsequent 41 against Proteas gave the Indian batting line up a new look.The Indian Fans were also back to their toes, thoroughly putting the Match Fixing behind them.On a personal note, I was very happy to see a young guy like Ganguly, who didnt fit the gentleman’s mould, and who was aggresive or arrogant, whichever way you look at it.

But Yuveraj embraced failures therafter, and the critics wanted his head at any cost.They said that Success had penetrated too deep into his head, and his exclusion was the only suggested remediation.This coupled with the success of Laxman, Badani and Mongia only made life too difficult for Yuveraj Singh. However I knew that Ganguly would revert this chap, when things go out of hand the first time. True to my thoughts, Yuveraj was back in the Colombo tour.After a few initial struggles, he made a 98 as a jsutification to his abilities, and was back in the good books.He was relatively consistent enough to grab a chance for the ENGLAnd tour.I always look forward to the Indian English tour, as English soil(Special Reference to Lords) has always been kind for India.The current 3 Superstars(Sachin, Sourav and Rahul) started their glory from the Mecca of Cricket.

The best thing indeed happened to Yuveraj, in England.Rahul Dravid was pushed to the fifth slot, a position ahead of Yuveraj. I was sure Yuveraj would prosper under the company of Dravid, who is an ideal foil for everyone.Things really started working out for Yuveraj, as he forged a great partnership with Dravid to script a memorable win against the English at the first match of Natwest Trophy, Lords.When he returned back to Lords for the final match, he had a consistent and confidenrt series under his belt.And then the Natwest Trophy happened to India, and Presto Yuveraj and Kaif were the Indian Future.Yuveraj also played the vital role in the ICC Championship Trophy(Remember the catch that won the match for India againts SA), and looked set up for a great career.After a moderate series against the Windies at home, Yuveraj showed his worth with some impressive innings’ in the forgettable Kiwis Series.

Yuveraj didnt have a memorable WC 2003, till he had the giant oppurtunity against Pakistan in the Match of the World Cup.When Tendulkar fell after the innings of the World Cup, every Indian was at deep blue sea, with the fear of having celebrated too soon, creeping in large.However with the unmatched company of Dravid(again!) took the game the Indian way with the same speed Sachin tilted the match in our favour.He also showed his might against the Kenyans, when they were posing a few problems for India in the Super 6.My only disappointment was his inability to dominate the Aussie attack in the final, which frustated even the cool Dravid, and eventually sealed the match in the Aussies favour.Later Yuvi made the most of the Bangladeshis to notch up his first one day century, and now he is a hot property for Yorkshire, this season.Today, Yuveraj alongwith Zaheer, Kaif, Harbajan and Sehwag form the Dada’s boys, who are seemingly soft, but actually hard on everything.And the Gentlemen Cricketers like Rahul and Sachin should be preservedm I believe..

Finally

Thanks to the 1st and 2nd Cricketers of Indiam for exposing the Indian Youth of Today, which can be read as Yuveraj Singh.