Speaking to former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar on Sports18’s special segment called ‘Home Of Heroes’ last year, legendary all-rounder Yuvraj Singh had cast doubts on Indian cricket team’s planning for ICC Cricket World Cup 2019. A worry for them even before the competition, convolution around the formation of their middle-order hurt India the most.
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Addressing the semi-final, in particular, Yuvraj believed that the team wasn’t able to handle the pressure of a knockout contest. He further reckoned that the lack of a clear frame of mind leading to constant chopping and changes prevented India from qualifying for a World Cup final for the fourth time.
Yuvraj also expressed disapproval of the selection of inexperienced players for a global tournament. In terms of exposure, both batter Rishabh Pant and all-rounder Vijay Shankar were extremely raw at the time. Furthermore, dropping Ambati Rayudu as a last-minute change remains hard to fathom till date.
“A crunch game came, you know? A No. 5 [4] batter has slogged it, No. 6 batter has slogged it, you are chasing 240. You needed guys who can, you know, work the game around and then you send MS Dhoni batting [at] No. 7 [6], who is probably their best player on those situations. So, I just felt that the pressure got the best of them,” Yuvraj told Jio Cinema.
If truth be told, one has no option than to agree with the southpaw especially around MS Dhoni‘s batting position. Reduced to 5/3 in the fourth over, India needed someone who could soak up the pressure. With Dhoni present in the dressing room, India’s biggest misjudgment lied in not promoting him at Old Trafford that day.
As per Yuvraj, senior pair of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were expected to do the heavy lifting throughout the competition. Not that the two didn’t perform according to expectations, India using four players in KL Rahul (once), Hardik Pandya (twice), Shankar (twice) and Pant (four times) at No. 4 highlighted their own ambiguity concerning a vital role.
Yuvraj, a top batter at No. 4 during his playing days, is an apt person to comment on that spot. For those who don’t know, India had tried as many as 13 players (including Yuvraj) at No. 4 in the build-up to the 2019 World Cup. A position which should’ve been given to Dhoni eventually left India stupefied.
Yuvraj Singh Rues Lack Of Middle-Order Specialists In T20I Squad
With India not winning an ICC trophy in the last decade, Yuvraj Singh had also shared his opinion on what has stopped them in the shortest format. Having played four T20 World Cups in this period, the Indian team received a valid suggestion from someone who had played a crucial in lifting ICC World Twenty20 2007.
Ruing the lack of middle-order specialists in the Indian ICC T20 World Cup 2022 squad, Yuvraj brought to light how a majority middle-order batters play up the order in the Indian Premier League. Unlike last year’s world event down under, the set who participated in the inaugural edition comprised specialists in this aspect.
“I was talking to Dhoni as well, we were doing a shoot. We had a discussion that our middle-order batsmen in T20I, they all bat higher for their franchise or in domestic cricket. Except Hardik, there were hardly any guys who bat 5-6-7,” Singh added.
It is needless to say that all IPL franchises want their star Indian batters to face the maximum number of balls. Be it Suryakumar Yadav or Pandya, both of them bat in the Top 4 positions nowadays. For India, however, they were playing as finishers. A designated finisher, wicket-keeper batter Dinesh Karthik, on the contrary, had lost his spot midway on the back of poor performances.
Since another T20 World Cup is slated to be played next year, one expects India to follow Yuvraj’s advice. Therefore, it’s high time they start grooming the likes of Tilak Varma, Rinku Singh, Shivam Dube and Rahul Tewatia ahead of the ninth T20 World Cup.
