Not Everyone Got Support From Management That Dhoni Had: Yuvraj Singh

Yuvraj Singh has been one of the giants of Indian cricket and has played a major role in helping win World Cups twice - T20 & ODI. Yuvraj was the player of the tournament in the 2011 World Cup which India won by defeating Sri Lanka in the Final. 

However, Yuvraj's comeback to cricket after fighting cancer wasn't a memorable one. Selected for the T20 World Cup 2014, the star all-rounder had an ordinary tournament and had a forgettable final where he struggled to score 11 runs in 21 balls. India lost that final to Sri Lanka. 

After several years of that tournament, Yuvraj opened up about what was going on with him during that final and the whole World Cup. 

“During the T20 World Cup in 2014, I was very low on confidence. There was an atmosphere that I could get dropped. It’s not an excuse but I wasn’t getting enough support from the team. From the time of Gary, I was in Duncan’s era and things had completely changed in the team," Yuvraj said speaking on Home of Heroes on Sports18. 

“When the final came, I just couldn’t hit the ball. I tried to hit the off-spinner and I couldn’t hit it and it went for dots. I tried to get out, I didn’t get out….Everybody thought my career was over after that. I also thought my career was over. But that’s life. You have to accept that. If you accept glories, you must accept your defeats as well and you must move forward," he added. 

Yuvraj went on to say that like him, many Indian cricketers didn't get much support from the team management at the backend of their career, barring MS Dhoni. 

"Definitely when you have support from the coach and the captain it helps. Look at Mahi (MS Dhoni) towards the end of his career. He had so much support from Virat and Ravi Shastri. They took him to the World Cup, he played till the end and went on to play 350 games. I think support is very important but in Indian cricket, everybody will not get support.

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“There have been great players like Harbhajan Singh, Virender Sehwag, VVS Laxman, Gautam Gambhir who didn’t get that (support). When you are batting out there and you know that the ax is hanging on your head how will you concentrate and bat and give your best? It is not an excuse but with different coaches and after 2011 times are very different," he added.