CHENNAI: Fast bowling is not the first thing that comes to mind when you see the name Yuvraj Singh on a scorecard; often it will be the free-flowing stroke play of the ODI and T20 World Cup-winning former India all-rounder.
But, for those who were at the IC-Guru Nanak College Ground in Chennai witnessing the Ranji Trophy match between Karnataka and Railways over the last couple of days, the name Yuvraj will resonate with the resilient efforts of the 23-year-old seamer at least for a while.
Making his first-class debut, Yuvraj was supposed to be the first-change bowler. As he was trying to soak in the feeling of playing in his first Ranji Trophy match, he saw Himanshu Singh, Railways’ strike bowler, walk-off in the sixth over on Thursday. Before he knew it, Yuvraj, full of nerves, was at the top of his mark to complete the rest of the over against established India international Mayank Agarwal and Devdutt Padikkal.
“I didn’t even realise what was happening in the first couple of overs,” says Yuvraj, who was erratic in his lengths early on, conceding a couple of boundaries.
“By the time I was bowling my third, I started focusing on the line and length I wanted to bowl,” he adds.
And in no time, he was troubling Mayank and Devdutt with the bounce he was extracting off the pitch. A couple of edges fell short, but soon he struck Mayank on the pads. Though he didn’t get the wicket, Mayank was caught short of the crease by the gully fielder. His first spell continued for 9 overs and by the end of it, Yuvraj had his first Ranji wicket in Padikkal.
But as Manish Pandey and KV Siddharth took on the Railways attack, the only limelight was the UP-born pacer, who was the only one to get some bounce and movement through the rest of the day. Manish took everyone apart, but against Yuvraj, he managed only 15 runs from 24 balls.
“I was trying not to give any room. I tried to attack his body and ensure that he wasn’t able to free his arms,” Yuvraj said, adding, “there was a particular spot in the pitch from where the ball was bouncing a bit more, so I was trying to hit the spot consistently with upright seam and not worry about results.”
In fact, that was the message from the dressing room. With a bowler short on the first hour of day one, skipper Karn Sharma and coach Zakaria Zuffri wanted to focus on being consistent, ‘controlling the controllables’ and not worry about leaking runs. He only got better on day two, taking three more wickets with the second new ball as he finished with five for 93 in 27.3 overs.
“Bowling in Chennai under humid conditions was very tough, and with a bowler down there was extra workload. I kept telling myself, ‘mera debut hain, team keliya karna hai’. And, I’m really happy with my performance,” he said.
Lauding his performance, Railways head coach Zakaria Zuffri said, “He’s been with us (Railways) for a few years now. To deliver this kind of performance on debut is really commendable. He did everything we asked of him.”
Hailing from a family of sportspersons in Uttar Pradesh, his father Padamveer is an India Kabaddi player, Yuvraj had no trouble taking up sports. Progressing through the age-group Railways tournaments rapidly, he made the senior debut a few months ago in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, where his performance (6 wickets in four matches) earned him trials with Delhi Capitals and Mumbai Indians. While being happy with the trials, Yuvraj’s focus now is on doing well in the premier men’s domestic tournament for Railways. Going by the way he’s started, it wouldn’t be far-fetched to say that one could hear a lot of Yuvraj , the pacer, for the foreseeable future.