Dropped despite clearing Yo-Yo Test. But why? Yuvraj Singh questions
What's the story
Former Indian swashbuckling batsman Yuvraj Singh, who announced his retirement earlier this year, has made a shocking revelation.
He said that the biggest setback of his career came in 2017 when he was dropped from the Indian squad despite having cleared the mandatory Yo-Yo test.
The incident happened despite his fair performance during the ICC Champions Trophy 2017.
He has questioned the BCCI's decision.
Selection U-turn
Was asked to play domestic cricket despite clearing Yo-Yo: Yuvraj
Yuvraj recalled that following the 2017 Champions Trophy, he was injured.
While he was asked to prepare for the Sri Lanka series, the Yo-Yo Test suddenly came into the picture.
"Suddenly, I had to go back and prepare for the Yo-Yo test at the age of 36. Even after I cleared the test, I was told to play domestic cricket," said Yuvi to AajTak.
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Yuvi believes Yo-Yo Test was an excuse to drop him
"They actually thought that I wouldn't be able to clear the test due to my age. And that it would be easy to decline me afterwards...yeah you can say it was an exercise in making excuses," Yuvi reckoned.
Unfair procedure
Yuvraj questions the board's procedure for dropping players
Yuvraj said that he was baffled by the way a senior player, with 15-17 years of international experience, was being treated in Indian cricket.
"Whichever player it is, the person who is in-charge should sit down and talk with the player that we are looking at the youngsters and we've taken this step. This is something which doesn't happen in Indian cricket," wondered Yuvi.
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Yuvi recalls the same happening with other big players
"It has been like that forever almost. I have seen it happen to big names. Took it personally then, but not now, as there is a time for everything to move on and I made my peace with it," Yuvi further added.
Playing 2019 WC
Yuvraj wanted to play ICC World Cup 2019
Yuvi said that while he did want to play the 2019 ICC World Cup, he was upset on being overlooked for the 2015 edition, despite scoring heavily in Ranji Trophy.
"There were a lot of factors which I can't put in words. Before the 2019 World Cup, I was 37 years old and a lot of things didn't go in my favor," he concluded.
On retirement
I wanted to play some cricket outside India: Yuvi
Speaking on his decision to retire, Yuvi said that while the Indian team had moved on without him, he couldn't and wanted to play some cricket outside the country.
"I felt a bit burdened. So, I thought if I have to play leagues outside India, I'll have to retire. So, I thought it was the perfect time to hang my boots," he further added.
Records
Records held by Yuvraj
Here are some of the records held by Yuvraj:
He remains the only batsman to hit six sixes in T20Is.
He scored the fastest T20 half-century off just 12 balls during ICC World T20 2007 against England.
He is the first all-rounder to score more than 300 runs and claim 15 wickets in an edition of the World Cup.