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Should Yuvraj Singh have been recalled for the Sri Lanka tri-series?
The Offside
There can be no doubt that the inclusion of Yuvraj Singh in the team
to play the Coca-Cola Cup in Sri Lanka is the best thing for Indian
cricket in a long time. In the first place, the talented Punjab
southpaw should never have been dropped. The fact that he has
explosive talent was never in doubt. Arriving on the scene with a
swashbuckling 84 against Australia in the ICC KnockOut in Kenya,
Yuvraj Singh was hailed as the person responsible for the mini revival
in Indian cricket.
The tall lad is as clean a striker of the ball as anyone else in the
country. The ability to play pacemen fearlessly is another factor that
simply cannot be overlooked. His 80-ball 84 against Australia was made
against the likes of Glenn McGrath, Jason Gillespie and Brett Lee
some of the best quick men in world cricket. The next match saw Yuvraj
come in late in the innings and make a vital 41 against South Africa
where again he was up against quality fat bowlers Allan Donald and
Shaun Pollock.
It's after these two quick innings that Yuvraj began to struggle a
bit. Every youngster is going to face some difficulty adjusting to the
highest level. At least in the case of Yuvraj Singh, he showed very
early on that he fitted in easily on the world stage. He had the
ability to perform. All he needed was some confidence.
On the field Yuvraj is a tiger. Prowling the crucial region at point
the left hander has effected some stunning catches and more than one
powerful throw to run out batsmen. Easily the best fielder of the
current crop of cricketers, Yuvraj Singh is worth quite a few runs on
the field apart from with the bat.
Having identified an exciting young prospect, it only makes sense to
back him all the way. Picking Yuvraj Singh for the Sri Lanka tri-
series is definitely a step in the right direction.
The Evidence:
The Onside
Yuvraj Singh's knocks in the ICC KnockOut were just a
flash in the pan. If you look at his performances after that
tournament, the truth is obvious. His scores in the eleven innings that
came immediately after the first two innings are as follows: 18, 7,
34, 4, 7, 3, 11, 17, 5, 29 and 19. That is 11 innings at an average of
14.00. For a top order batsman that kind of average is simply
unacceptable.
Given the same number of chances and a lot less credit, youngsters
like Hemang Badani and Dinesh Mongia have proven to be much more solid
cricketers. Yuvraj Singh likes to go after the bowling all the time
and we know that such an approach will never work. Even players like
Sachin Tendulkar have to curb their strokemaking tendencies every now
and then.
To compound the argument, Yuvraj Singh has displayed a marked weakness
against the spinners. In the Champions Trophy match versus Sri Lanka,
Yuvraj Singh was bamboozled by Muthiah Muralitharan before being
cleaned up for just 7. The second time India played Lanka in the same
tourney the result was identical: Yuvraj Singh dismissed by
Muralitharan for 7! The offspinner from Lanka must be licking his lips
in glee when he saw the Indian team list for the Lanka tri-series.
India would be best served picking horses for courses. Yuvraj Singh
has definite flaws in his technique against spinners. He would do well
to correct those flaws while playing domestic cricket. After all, once
his flaws are exposed at the international level, it would be very
difficult for him to make a comeback. Against the Lankans, Yuvraj
averages a measly 5.66. There' s absolutely no logical basis to
picking Yuvraj Singh for the Coca-Cola Cup in Sri Lanka and therefore
he should never have been recalled.
The Evidence:
Archive
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