I'd love to play Test cricket again: Yuvraj Singh

Yuvraj Singh was the chief architect of India’s road to victory in the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup after 28 overs. However, his career went on a downslide after the reaching its peak. Life-threatening illness and a slump in form denied him any chance of regularly playing in the Indian colors.

Constant efforts and desire to continue playing for the country saw the 34-year-old get a second lease of opportunity in his career earlier this year.

In a recent interview with Times of India, Yuvraj said that he was desperate to make a comeback to the field. At the launch of Puma’s bold Tricks collection, Yuvraj opened up to Time of India.

Yuvraj Singh picked up the ankle injury during India’s crucial Super 10 stage fixture against Australia during the World T20. Yuvi struggled with the pain but continued playing, helping India win the game and advance to the semi-final.

Unfortunately, the injury was grave and he had to miss the following big games – the semi-final. Yuvi said that he had prepared himself for the World T20 and it was frustrating to sit out due to the injury.

“I’d prepared myself for the World T20. I was contributing well for the team with bat and ball. It’s always frustrating to miss a semi-final, especially of a World Cup, because there aren’t many that you play, and it was a big occasion. Unfortunately, the team lost as well, so I felt even more bad.”

There is good news for his fans waiting for his comeback as the southpaw said that he is targeting return on May 6.

“The cast on my leg was taken off yesterday. I am looking to play the game on May 6. Hopefully, I should be ready by then. It’s not certain that I will play on May 6, but my target is to play on that day.”

Yuvraj also applauded his younger teammate Virat Kohli’s capabilities. Yuvi feels that Virat has gone little ahead of his potential due to his hard work.

“He’s been playing really well for a long time. He’s been consistent. Every time he comes back into form, his performances get better. You don’t see that with a lot of players. Virat wins you a lot of games, which he did for us in World T20.”

It’s a well-known fact that both cricketers share a great bond with each other. Their fabulous bonding can also be witnessed on the field where they have played many important knocks together.

“We have a lot of understanding. See, I’ve seen him grow up in front of me. I’ve always tried to help him with things that a young guy needs. I felt all along that he and Rohit had a lot of potential. He’s living up to it. I think he’s gone a little ahead of his potential. It’s only because he trains the hardest. His self-belief is more than the others, which is the reason he has excelled.”

When asked about his future career plans, Yuvraj gave a positive reply saying that he would wait for his chance to play and will to give his best in whatever opportunity he get in the future.

“It depends on how well the IPL goes. If I do well in it, I may get an opportunity. Right now, it’s tough to get a spot in the India ODI side, because, in the middle order, Ajinkya Rahane and Manish Pandey are playing really well. So if I get an opportunity, it’ll be great. I’ll give my best in whatever cricket I get to play.”

Many of his fans feel that Yuvi could have succeeded more at the Test level. But, the cricketer said that he did his best in whatever opportunities he got in the start studded Indian team in which he played as a young man.

“Yaar when you’ve been the 12th man in a team for seven years, and you’ve greats like Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly , Rahul Dravid Virender Sehwag and VVS Laxman, it’s difficult to get an opportunity because that time we used to get one or two chances.“

“In our time, there was so much competition that it was hard to get opportunities. So, whatever the circumstances, I think I did decently well.”

He also feels that there is more opportunity in the current team and with India set to play a major chunk of their match at home, he can make a worthy comeback in the whites.

“I’ve scored six-seven hundreds in the past couple of seasons in the Ranji Trophy . If I get a chance to play on spinning tracks, I’ve been playing spin well. I’d love to play Test cricket again. See, the selection isn’t in my hand. All I can do is try my best.”

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