Almost two years after he last played for India, Yuvraj Singh is back among Men in Blue as part of the T20 squad for tour of Australia
Two years after he donned the Blue jersey the last time, Yuvraj Singh is back. And how.
The five wise men picked the Punjab cricketer for the three T20 internationals against Australia, which will be played after a five-match ODI series next month.
Off late, the 34-year-old strapping cricketer was more in the news because of his engagement to model-turned-actress Hazel Keech. However, the World Cup winner used the Vijay Hazare Trophy as an opportunity to bring focus back on his cricket and himself ride back triumphantly to a place among the Men in Blue — something his fans have vehemently claimed is rightfully his.
The southpaw batsman might be relieved at finally making it back to the national side but he might be a trifle disappointed that he is not in the ODI squad.
The selectors picked the six-sixes-in-an-over batsman keeping the ICC World T20 in mind to be played in India in March and April next year. And Yuvraj's big hitting skills might just be the "finisher" that Dhoni is looking for.
"Yuvraj has been special and the captain is happy to have him back," said Sandeep Patil, who is chief of the selection committee. "We will need experienced players in the T20 WC. Australia tour perfect chance to give them a shot," he added.
The T20 squad is more about having the experience and specialists to get the job done and considering he big-ticket event will be held in India, selectors must be keen to test their arsenal in advance.
Yuvraj's return is not surprising though. It was on the back of some power-packed performances in the Vijay Hazare Trophy being played in Hyderabad.
The Punjab skipper is fourth on the list of leading run scorers with 341 runs from five games at an average of 85.25, strike rate of 103.64 and 16 hits over the ropes. No other batsman comes close to number of sixes hit by Yuvraj. The second highest being nine by Saurashtra's Sheldon Jackson.
Yuvraj last played for India in the previous edition of World T20 (2014) in Bangladesh. The only batsman to hit six sixes in an over in international cricket (remember Stuart Broad in ICC World T20 2007), did not have a great time and was seen struggling with the bat. He managed to score just 100 runs in six matches with just one half century.
Yuvraj was subsequently dropped and since then many experts and commentators have talked about his career coming to an end.
Yuvraj's performances in Indian Premier League, where he fetched record breaking prices in two consecutive years (Royal Challengers Bangalore for Rs 14 crore in 2014 & Delhi Daredevils for Rs 15 crore in 2015) was not up to the expectations. He could not do justice to his price tag. In the league, he was not the danger man the bowlers feared once.
The new 2015-16 season saw a rejuvenated Yuvraj. He did not do wonders in the first class cricket scoring just 398 runs at an average of 36.18 in seven games with one century against his name. However, it was in his favourite format — the one-dayers — that he stamped his authority. With his big hitting in the Vijay Hazare Trophy he sent reminders to the selectors of his current form. And they were pleased to take him back.
Also, as skipper the southpaw was instrumental in leading Punjab to tournament's quarterfinal.
With Yuvraj back and the entertaining World T20 around the corner, expect some explosive power hitting.
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