Yuvraj Singh hits double ton, proves he's ready for Test return

October 15, 2012
yuvi_double_ton

Comeback man Yuvraj Singh hits double century to take North Zone to 451 runs vs Central Zone in the semi-final of the Duleep Trophy.

Yuvraj slammed 208 runs before Central Zone bowler Murali Kartik took a return catch to dismiss him. He scored at an impressive rate of 86.00. He took 241 deliveries and hit 33 fours and three sixes.

On Sunday, Yuvraj made a brilliant comeback into first-class arena as he smashed an unbeaten century for North Zone against Central on the first day of a semi-final match in the Duleep Trophy.


At stumps, North were in commanding position having scored 346 for 4, riding on Yuvraj's superb unbeaten 133 while skipper Shikhar Dhawan also made his presence felt with an innings of 121.

The innings will certainly end any doubts whatsoever about Yuvraj's fitness and his ability to withstand the rigours of longer version of the game after recovering from rare germ cell cancer. He played only 152 deliveries during his knock on Sunday and hit 20 boundaries and two huge sixes off discarded India veteran Murali Kartik on Sunday. This is Yuvraj's 19th first-class century but certainly one he would remember for a long time to come.

Yuvraj, 30, who was judged man of the tournament in India's 50-over World Cup triumph last year, was treated for the cancer between his lungs in the United States earlier this year.


He returned after energy-sapping chemotherapy treatment in April and by August had been fast-tracked into the Indian team for the recent World Twenty20 in Sri Lanka.

Yuvraj ended the tournament with 66 runs in four innings and claimed eight wickets in five matches, the second highest among Indian bowlers after seamer Lakshmipathy Balaji's nine wickets.

India, the 2007 champions, won four of their five matches but failed to reach the semi-finals of the event eventually won by the West Indies.


Yuvraj's double-century is certain to put him in line for a recall when the four-Test series against England starts in Ahmedabad on November 15.

He has not played Test cricket since November last year when he turned out for two matches against the touring West Indies.

Yuvraj has played 37 Tests since his international debut in 2000, scoring 1,775 runs at an average of 34.80 with three centuries. He has also claimed nine Test wickets with his left-arm spin.





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Agencies
January 14,2020

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Agencies
August 2,2020

New Delhi, Aug 2: Batting great Rahul Dravid has attributed Chennai Super Kings' consistent run in the IPL to skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni's instincts, game-smarts and the incredible amount of work that goes behind the scenes.

N Srinivasan, the former BCCI president and head of India Cements, which owns the CSK franchise, agreed that Dhoni is a man of instinct who doesn't believe in attending team meetings and going over data.

Both were speaking at a webinar organised by the Great Lakes Institute of Management.

"If you look at the success CSK has had, they've got really good access to data and they've got really good access to people behind the scenes and they've run cricket teams at the junior level," Dravid said at the webinar according to ESPNcricinfo.

The former India captain added, "They understand talent and they've obviously got a good scouting process in place. But, what they also have is a captain who really understands instincts.

"So, I mean, look, I know Dhoni quite well and I hope he hasn't changed, but I know Dhoni is probably not one to look at reams of data and statistics."

The Super Kings have won the lucrative tournament three times -- one less than Mumbai Indians -- and reached the knockouts in each of the 10 seasons they have been a part of.

Srinivasan also spoke about how Dhoni's instinct and judgement contributed to his team's success at a time when a lot of emphases is placed on data.

"We're awash with data just now. To give you an example, there are bowling coaches and in a T20 game, they play videos of every batsman whom they're going to come against and they see how he got out, what's his strength, what's his weakness etc.

"So, MS Dhoni doesn't attend this, he's a pure instinct man. The bowling coach, (head coach Stephen) Fleming will be there and everybody will be there, everyone is giving opinions, (but) he'll get up and go.

"In the context of instinct, he feels that okay he can assess a batsman or player on the field, that's his judgement. On the other hand, there is so much of data that is available to help a person also analyse. It's a very difficult line to draw (between data and instinct)."

Srinivasan also recalled how Dhoni once refused to take "one outstanding player" suggested by the franchise boss as that could have broken the team's cohesion.

"There was one outstanding player that we suggested to MS, he said: 'no sir, he will spoil the team'. The cohesion within the team is important and see in America, franchise-based sport has been there for such a long time," he said.

"In India, we're just starting and we're new to it. But we at India Cements have had a lot of experience running teams at junior levels."

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News Network
March 5,2020

Mar 5: India reached a maiden women's Twenty20 World Cup final Thursday after their last four clash against England was washed out, sparking calls for the International Cricket Council to include reserve days in future events.

Harmanpreet Kaur's unbeaten side were due to face the 2009 champions at the Sydney Cricket Ground, but the rain began pouring early in the day with barely any let-up.

With a minimum 10 overs per side needed for a result and no break in the weather, the umpires called it off without a ball being bowled.

Normally, five overs per side are needed to constitute a Twenty20 match, but the rules are different for ICC tournaments.

Four-time champions Australia are scheduled to take on South Africa later in the second semi-final, with that match also under threat.

With no reserve day, the highest-ranked teams from the two groups move into the final if play is not possible

That would pit India against South Africa at the Melbourne Cricket Ground on Sunday, where organisers are hoping to attract 90,000 plus fans, denying Australia a chance to defend their crown.

A reserve day is allowed for the final and the lack of one for the semis has been criticised by some players, with England captain Heather Knight among those calling for change.

"If both semi-finals are lost it would be a sad time for the tournament," she told reporters ahead of the match. "It's obviously going to be a shame if it does happen and I'm sure there will be a lot of pressure on the ICC to change that."

Cricket Australia chief Kevin Roberts said he sought clarification from the ICC about adding a reserve day with the Sydney weather looking ominous, but the request was denied.

"We've asked the question and it's not part of the playing conditions and we respect that," he told Melbourne's SEN radio.

"It gives you cause to reflect and think about how you might improve things in the future, but going into a tournament with a given set of playing conditions and rules, I don't think it's time to tinker with the rules."

It is not the way India would have wanted to make the final, but they are deserving of being there having gone through the group phase as the only unbeaten team.

After opening their campaign by upsetting Australia, they beat Bangladesh, New Zealand and then Sri Lanka.

While the entire team played well, teenage batting prodigy Shafali Verma excelled, which saw her elevated to the top of the ICC T20 batting rankings this week aged just 16.

She is only the second Indian after Mithali Raj to reach number one, pushing New Zealand veteran Suzie Bates down to second.

Ranked four in the world, India had made three semi-finals before this year and lost every time, including against England at the last World Cup.

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