An enigma called Yuvraj SIngh

We all love this man. Such a rare talent, Yuvraj Singh is arguably the most gifted Indian batsman since you know who. He makes batting look ridiculously easy. With that exquisite timing and great hand-eye coordination, his broad shoulders wield the willow like ‘Excalibur’. With that perfect combination of power and finesse, he batters the best bowlers around with panache. And he is pleasing to the eye, thereby satisfying those guardian angels of pure technique. Add to that his golden arm that regularly manages to prise out the best batsmen around and of course his dynamism in the field, and you arrive at the perfect package.

He had all the hallmarks of an all-time great from the very beginning. The laymen as well as those hard-nosed experts were all bowled over by his genius. His scintillating strokeplay reminded us of the God himself (you all know whom I meant). And he is such a fighter and a team man to the core. It is heart-warming to reminisce about his valiant fight to finally crown his greatest hero, none other than our cricketing God, as the world champion. The whole nation was in tenterhooks when he was diagnosed with cancer, albeit a non-malignant tumour by God’s grace. A billion hearts prayed for him. A fighter par excellence he is, as he fought back and made a remarkable come back to the field, much to our joy.

But a few difficult questions need to be asked. It’s a hard fact that for all those moments of brilliance, Yuvraj has not been able to do justice to his enormous talent. Maybe we are being a bit too harsh on him, maybe we are measuring him against a higher standard. But it is the curse of his genius that he will be always measured against a higher standard; judged a bit too harshly. Even Tendulkar, the great one, was crucified, made a totem of the team’s failures. But the fact remains that at the end of the day, statistics do matter. Despite being given more than his fair share of opportunities, Yuvraj failed rather spectacularly to find a foothold in Test arena. 1900 odd Test runs at an average of 34, with just 3 hundreds in 40 odd matches is mediocre at best, a rather embarrassing stat for a player of such calibre. Of course, in limited over cricket, he is a match winner in his own right. But even there, given his talent, we have to say that he has underperformed to a degree. This is not forgetting his stellar role in our victorious world cup campaigns and many more match winning knocks. But the sheer volume of talent this man possesses, makes us expect a bit more. It’s just that we all want him to be right up there in the pantheon of greats; don’t want him to join the rank of Kamblis.

Now time has come for Yuvraj to step up. This is a crucial juncture for Indian cricket, especially in Test arena. Stalwarts like Dravid and Laxman have bid adieu. Old masters, Ganguly and Kumble had faded away much earlier. Harbhajan too seems to be on his way out. And, the greatest of them all, Sachin Tendulkar, looking increasingly mortal, is on the last lap of his illustrious career. India badly needs stability in middle order. We need a pivot for the team as well as the fans to rally around. Given his genius and cult status, he is the perfect man to arrest the slide of this once great team. If he fails to find his bearing, I am afraid that this team is condemned to abyss, once the great man retires from all forms. Destiny beckons Yuvraj. Will he be up to it? For the sake of Indian cricket, we would hope so.