Don't want to think of cancer relapse: Yuvraj

January 2, 2013

Kolkata, Jan 2: India's flamboyant all-rounder Yuvraj Singh, who has returned to the game after a successful battle with cancer, Wednesday said he kept the thought of relapse of the disease away from his mind.

"Every survivor has this at the back of his mind. Aap ne to darai diya mujhe relapse bolke (you have frightened me by talking of relapse). I don't want to think about relapse," Yuvraj said at a programme when asked what would be his message to cancer survivors who may suffer a relapse.

Yuvraj said it was important that cancer patients visit the right doctors and get the right treatment.

Diagnosed with a stage-1 cancerous tumour in his left lung in 2011, Yuvraj had to undergo a rigorous chemotherapy regime in the US before making his international comeback in a Twenty20 match in September against New Zealand.

Describing 2011 as the most crucial but unpredictable year of his life, Yuvraj said while he was a part of the Indian team that won the World Cup, he was also diagnosed with the dreaded disease.

"I got diagnosed with cancer. It's very difficult to get out of it. I am very happy I could come out," said the southpaw.

He said now his first priority was to perform and improve.

"My priority now is my performance, how to go about my business, ... better my performance. I look forward. I am positive."

Yuvraj said he would miss "elder brother" Sachin Tendulkar in the Indian dressing rooms during the One-Day Internationals. Tendulkar last month announced his retirement from ODIs.

"I am very sad that I will miss Tendulkar in the ODI dressing room. He is such a great player. But we (the players) will talk about his contribution to Indian cricket."

"Apart from that, he is a great man. Someone we always look up to. He was like an elder brother," Yuvraj added.

yuvraj

Lance Armstrong will always be my hero


Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh on Wednesday said fellow cancer survivor cyclist Lance Armstrong would always be his hero, despite the ban slapped on the American for use of performance-enhancing drugs.

However, the all-rounder said he was "worried" about the consequences that the cyclist may have to go through.

Yuvraj said he sent a message Wednesday itself to Armstrong wishing him happy New Year and telling him: "You will always be my hero, no matter what people say."

"I am worried about what all has happened to him. I am worried about the consequences," Yuvraj said.

Armstrong successfully battled testicular cancer to win a record seven consecutive titles at the Tour de France.

However, last year he was disqualified from all his wins since August 1998 for using and distributing performance-enhancing drugs and was banned from professional cycling for life.

Yuvraj was also diagnosed with cancer, but returned to the field after completing his treatment.

While undergoing treatment in the US, Yuvraj looked up to Armstrong. The legendary cyclist also visited Yuvraj in Boston where the cricketer was undergoing treatment.

"Battling cancer, coming back, winning the titles, that needed lot of courage. You can see interesting movies of adventures where there are super heroes. But that`s fiction. On the other hand, Lance Armstrong is a reality. He will always be my hero," he said.

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Agencies
January 5,2020

Mumbai, Jan 5: All-rounder Irfan Pathan on Saturday announced his retirement from all forms of cricket, ending an injury-ridden career that prevented him from realising his true potential.

The 35-year-old's retirement was on expected lines, considering he last played a competitive game in February 2019 during the Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy for Jammu and Kashmir.

He did not even put himself in the IPL auction pool, last month.

The left-arm seamer's bowling was like a breath of fresh air when he made his India debut against Australia at the Adelaide Oval in 2003.

He never had express pace but his natural ability to swing the ball into the right-handers got him instant success, also drawing comparisons with the great Kapil Dev.

It seemed India had found the all-rounder they were looking for since Kapil left the scene. Pathan, who last played for India in October 2012, featured in 29 Tests (1105 runs and 100 wickets), 120 ODIs (1544 runs and 173 wickets) and 24 T20 Internationals (172 runs and 28 wickets).

He was part of the victorious Indian team at the 2007 World Twenty20 and was the man-of-the-match in the final against Pakistan.

One of his best performances came on the tour of Pakistan in 2006 when he became the second Indian after Harbhajan Singh to take a Test hat-trick, removing Salman Butt, Younis Khan and Mohammad Yusuf during the Karachi game.

He also played a big role in India winning a Test match against Australia on a tough Perth wicket, which offered steep bounce.

Injuries and lack of form troubled him thereafter and his ability to swing the ball deteriorated.

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News Network
June 24,2020

New Delhi, Jun 24: Star Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan deeply regrets his "silly mistake" of not reporting a corrupt approach by an Indian bookie to the ICC, leading to his one year suspension from the game.

Shakib was banned for two years, one year of it suspended, for failing to report corrupt approaches during an IPL edition by an alleged Indian bookie named Deepak Aggarwal.

"I took the approaches too casually When I met the anti-corruption guy and told them and they knew everything. Gave them all the evidence and they knew everything that happened," Shakib told Harsha Bhogle on 'Cricbuzz in Conversation'.

"To be honest, that's the only reason I was banned for a year, otherwise I'd have been banned for five or 10 years," he added on the ICC's investigation.

The 33-year-old, who was in brilliant form before the ban, amassing 606 runs in the 2019 World Cup in the UK, said he regrets how he went about the situation.

"But I think that was a silly mistake I made. Because with my experience and the amount of international matches I've played and the amount of ICC's anti-corruption code of conduct classes I took, I shouldn't have made that decision, to be honest."

Lesson learnt, Shakib's advice to all young criceters is to never take any such message lightly.

"I regret that. No one should take such messages or calls (from bookies) lightly or leave it away. We must inform the ICC ACSU guy to be on the safe side and that's the lesson I learnt, and I think I learnt a big lesson," he added.

The all-rounder, whose ban ends on October 29, said he became a bit arrogant and never felt he was doing anything wrong by not reporting the bookie's approach immediately.

"Because you do most things right in your life, you tend to get arrogant with some decisions. You may not realise but you're doing wrong by the books. It never came to my mind that I am doing something wrong

"It was just a feeling of 'okay, what's going to happen, leave it' and I continued with my life. But that's the mistake I made. And that happens," Shakib said.

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News Network
February 16,2020

Feb 16: Mayank Agarwal finally found some form going his way and Rishabh Pant mixed caution with his customary aggression as India's warm-up fixture against New Zealand XI ended in a draw in Hamilton on Sunday. The match was called off an hour after lunch with India reaching 252 for four just 48 overs into their second innings. Agarwal, who had gone through a wretched period since the second Test against Bangladesh, retired on 81 off 99 balls with 10 fours and three sixes to his name. To the relief of the Indian team management, Pant played in his customary manner to reach 70 off 65 balls, but also showed discretion when the opposition bowlers were in the midst of a good spell.

There were four sixes -- two each off leg-spinner Ish Sodhi and off-spinner Henry Cooper. While Sodhi was hit down the ground, Cooper was dispatched over extra cover on a couple of occasions.

He didn't curb his aggression though; there were times when he was ready defend against the spinners and also leave some of the deliveries that the Kiwi pacers bowled.

Even though Pant is easily the better batsman compared to his senior Wriddhiman Saha, the innings might have come too late in the day considering that the latter is a better keeper and possibly a more responsible batsman in pressure situations.

The biggest positive to have emerged from the second innings is Agarwal's poor run coming to an end.

The Seddon Park track easing out was definitely a factor but Agarwal's footwork was more assured as he played some glorious on-drives and pull-shots off fast bowlers.

Before this game, Agarwal had played 10 competitive games including first-class, ODIs and List A matches and couldn't cross the 40-run mark in 11 completed innings.

He even bagged a pair against New Zealand A in an unofficial Test match. Once he had got his form back, he didn't come out to bat after lunch giving Saha an opportunity to score an unbeaten 30, his runs coming mostly against non-regular bowlers.

The Agarwal-Pant pair added 100 runs in 14.3 overs and it also helped that part-timers like Cooper was introduced into the action. In the morning, Prithvi Shaw (39 off 31 balls) was bowled through the gate by Daryl Mitchell as the batsman left a gaping hole between his bat and pad.

Shaw, though, seemed to have done enough during his brisk 72-run stand with Agarwal, which could put an end to the debate around the opening slot even though the tracks in Wellington and Christchurch could be a test of technique for the flamboyant Mumbaikar.

It was a match that Shubman Gill would perhaps like to forget in a hurry as he was dismissed cheaply for the second time in a row. He scored 8 before Daryl Mitchell trapped him leg before.

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