BIRMINGHAM: Yuvraj Singh is on the verge of playing his 300th One-Day International, against Bangladesh. The stylish all-rounder, architect of some of India’s most famous wins in the shorter formats, opened up on the milestone. Excerpts...
On the milestone match
It’s a big achievement for me, to play 300 games. It’s a huge honour. When I started playing, I was happy with just one game for India. At one stage I was thinking if I was going to play another game... So yeah, I’ve certainly come a long way.
The quality he admires the most in himself
I think the biggest quality would be never giving up, keep pushing no matter what the obstacles are. I think that’s what I can give to the younger guys... Never to back down.
Was comeback more difficult than making debut?
Yes, I think to play for India is not that difficult, but to sustain it is tough. When things are not going well for you, people start having their own opinion of you... So at that time, it’s very important to believe in yourself.
Most memorable innings
Definitely the 2011 World Cup quarterfinal against Australia. Then my debut game (innings) against Australia and the Natwest final in 2002 would be third.
Battling cancer and comeback
Definitely I’d like to be seen as a fighter. A lot of people can actually get inspired, not to give up. Cancer is something which I talk about a lot. A lot of people think there’s a stigma with cancer. So I can motivate a lot of people to come out of it, and to come back to where they belong.
Any unfulfilled desire?
My life was saved. That’s more important. It’s a blessing to come back, play for India. I won’t talk about regrets when I’m in a good zone.