When Gautam Gambhir and Yuvraj Singh motivated Yusuf Pathan
Yusuf Pathan, a member of India's 2007 T20 World Cup-winning team, opened up about the guidance he received from senior cricketers like Yuvraj Singh and Gautam Gambhir on his India debut. The elder Pathan also praised his younger brother Irfan Pathan for motivating him before his debut match, the final of the T20 WC against Pakistan.
During a live session on Instagram, Yusuf Pathan revealed how he received the surprising news of being picked up for the final match, owing to an unfortunate injury to regular opener Virender Sehwag. He gave a detailed description of how players like Singh and his brother helped him overcome the nerves of the sudden selection, just before the match started. Pathan also recalled the guidance he received from senior partner Gambhir while walking onto the field to face arch-rivals Pakistan.
The all-rounder added that although it was not the greatest of debuts, what mattered the most was that the Indian team won the trophy and brought joy to the millions of fans in the country.
"I didn't know that i was going to open. I was in the gym when Yuvraj came and said, 'what are you doing in the gym?. He informed me that I am playing. Younger brother Irfan then motivated me and backed me tremendouly. It was such a short time to digest that big news. Seniors motivated me a lot. Gautam Gambhir was my partner at the other end when we opened the innings. He asked me to enjoy the occasion and not to worry about anything. He backed me comepletely and asked to follow my natural instinct... It was a memorable WC."
When Irfan Pathan made Yusuf Pathan proud
Yusuf Pathan's younger brother, Irfan walked away with the man of the match award after a scintillating display of bowling where he took three crucial wickets while conceding just 16 runs and made his elder brother and his entire family proud.
Later, both the brothers scripted memorable wins for India while playing together at home and in overseas conditions.
The spin-bowling all-rounder subsequently made his ODI debut in 2008 versus Pakistan. He went on to play 57 ODIs and 22 T20Is for India, scoring 1046 runs and claiming 46 wickets in both formats combined.
The senior Pathan has also played 174 IPL matches, scoring more than 3000 runs and scalping over 40 wickets.
