The cricketer who taught us to never give up!
Yuvraj Singh is the breathing testament of the fact that nothing can stop you , not even a life threatening disease , from doing what you love the most !
In the World Cup of 2011 , Yuvraj was at the Peak of his career . With 362 runs, 15 wickets and the Man of the Tournament award, life couldn’t have been better on the cricket pitch. And India Seemed to have got a ALL ROUNDER they were looking for , a all rounder who could prove to be a trump card in crucial situations . He was the player who provided the balance every team looks for and a saviour who could pull the game in your favour when the things were not going according to the plan . A All rounder ” who will matter ,when it matters the most “
And then, quite suddenly, his life turned into a downward spiral!
He was diagnosed with a cancerous tumour in his left Lung – and his career seems to have encountered a dead end . But Yuvraj had other things in mind . He was determined to fight it and comeback to what he loves the most – Cricket . He underwent chemotherapy treatment at the Cancer Research Institute in Boston as well as Medicine Facilities in Indianapolis, Indiana . Unlike many other international athletes who like to hide their ailments under a veil of secrecy, Yuvraj posted pictures of his shaved head on Twitter, as he began losing hair during the treatment. It showed that the indomitable batsman was not letting the life-threatening disease or chemotherapy keep his spirits down.
And it was his indomitable fighting spirit that got him back on cricket pitch and to everyone’s surprise just within 6 months . And soon he was on the T20 team with a gem of knock against Pakistan in December later that year .
On his comeback into the Indian team, he had said
“I always believed that if I get my life back I would get my cricket back because that is deep-rooted in me. There were times I got depressed with the pain and what all my body was going through but I was determined to wear that jersey once again. The side effects of chemo made me reel on my knees some days. But I was determined to come back and play for my country. That’s the one thing which always motivated
me.”
That comeback lasted a few months, during which he briefly showed signs of being back to his best.
But it all came to a screeching halt in Bangladesh, when his momentum-sapping 21-ball 11 in the final of the World T20 against Sri Lanka saw India crash to a defeat. There was a feeling that a great career was drawing to a bitter close.
Everyone thought that he should retire now but Yuvraj had other plans . Fast forward nearly two years, and Yuvraj Singh gets another shot at redemption. And Yuvraj was back in the Squad , this time on merit and not just on his past achievements .
In the Vijay Hazare Tropy , Yuvraj’s scored 343 runs in the 6 matches that he played at an outstanding average of 69.2 and a strike rate of 100.2 . He took Punjab to the knockouts with a scintillating 83-ball 98 in a chase of 324 against Services.
These are numbers of a man in good touch.
It can be said that the dashing southpaw has found a new lease of form this season, and maybe this can be pinned down to him being freed of the responsibility to live up to the tag of an international cricketer, a load that he had carried for thirteen years. It is when he throws caution to the wind that he is at his most destructive – Stuart Broad would remember.
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