"I just reminded the world of Yuvraj Singh's achievements" - Gautam Gambhir on rating the all-rounder as the greatest [SK Match Ki Baat Exclusive]
Former India batter Gautam Gambhir defended naming Yuvraj Singh as the greatest-ever white-ball player in the past. The former all-rounder has arguably been one of the greatest match-winners that the nation has ever produced, especially in limited-overs cricket.
The two left-handed players have shared the dressing room for the national side during their playing days. They were also part of Team India's World Cup-winning campaigns in 2007 and 2011.
Explaining why he considers Yuvraj Singh the greatest white-ball player of all time, Gambhir highlighted the difference in the playing conditions over the years as well as Yuvraj's ability to win games across all three facets of the game.
"Just take a look at Yuvraj Singh's contribution in the 2007 T20 World Cup, look at his innings against Australia and England. Consider his contribution in the 2011 ODI World Cup. So, I just reminded the world of Yuvraj Singh's achievements. I just tried reminding everyone of it and talk about the player, whose contributions helped India win 2 World Cups," Gambhir said in an exclusive interaction with Sportskeeda.
"Yuvraj Singh is still, in my eyes, the greatest white ball player ever. No one has been better than him, and no one in India still is. The reason is that, you have to look at his contribution with the ball and the field as well. You also have to look at his batting position. Back then, there was only one white ball, there were five fielders outside the circle. So, if you consider all of these things, and then judge the performances, then no is better than Yuvraj," Gambhir added.
Yuvraj Singh had played crucial knocks in the knockout stages of both the 2007 T20 World Cup as well as the 2011 ODI World Cup. He was also named player of the tournament for his performances in the latter.
"Unfortunately, we do not talk about Yuvraj enough" - Gautam Gambhir
Gambhir also believes that Yuvraj Singh's performances are not talked about enough in the country, and he refused to delve into the reasons for the same.
Nowadays, there are 2 new balls, four fielders outside the circle for the majority part, DRS. So, from that point of view, I don't think there is any other player who can match Yuvraj Singh's performances. So, I did not say anything wrong. Unfortunately, we do not talk about Yuvraj enough, there are many reasons for it, and the less I say about it, the better," Gambhir concluded.
Gambhir, currently part of the KKR camp as a mentor, has guided the franchise to the top of the points table in the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL) season.