Cardiff: Yuvraj Singh attended a charity event hosted by Mackenzie Homes to support his NGO — The YouWeCan Foundation- last week where he spoke about his fight against cancer and return to the game.
During his speech, the inspirational cricketer said: “I will feel fortunate if I can motivate people to never give up and to continue to chase their dreams, no matter how big the obstacle is. I live by two strong beliefs — to never give up, and if one falls, one should get up and do it all over again.”
It is this belief and never-say-die spirit that will be make it a special day for Yuvraj at the Edgbaston ground on Thursday when India take on Bangladesh in the second semi-final. He will become only the fifth Indian to have played 300 One-day Internationals after Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid and Mohammad Azharuddin.
With a half-century against Pakistan in the first game, he has silenced critics who felt he was past his prime. At the end of the innings, Indian skipper Virat Kohli rightly remarked that Yuvraj’s knock was the game-changer.
Yuvraj is 35 years old and may not have many years of cricket left in him, but he is keen to give his best to ensure an India win. It has been a long 17-year journey for him in international cricket, and he is a perfect example of being someone who has been there and done that. The sixes that he hits so effortlessly have the power of an youngster and the timing of a veteran.
Though India’s captaincy has eluded him, he does not seem to be bothered about it. What matters for him is playing a brilliant knock or giving a breakthrough with his left arm accurate spin.
An interesting aspect about Yuvraj’s personality is his ability to mix with anyone. Be it seniors or youngsters, he is just the same and treats everyone like a friend. In a few minutes of interacting with him, one realises he is a man who is ready for a laugh, enjoy and play cricket. Youngsters in the team look up to him and look forward to bat like him. A good example is Hardik Pandya, who adores him and flashes of Yuvraj’s batting style can be seen in Pandya’s game. Kohli also adores him because he was only a teenager when Yuvraj made his debut in 2000.
To understand the value that Yuvraj brings to the team, one has to only look back at his momentous achievements- two Man of Tournament awards in two World Cups, both of which India won. Interestingly, Yuvraj’s international career too began with the Champions Trophy in 2000 when the tournament was called the ICC knockout tournament.
The tournament may have aged since then, but Yuvraj’s temperament and enthusiasm still remain young as ever.
