Yuvraj trains hard with eye on No 4 slot
NEW DELHI : With India struggling to find an option at No 4 in their batting line-up in One-day Internationals, it seems Yuvraj Singh is fancying his chances.
The southpaw is working on his fitness at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore and is preparing for the Yoyo test, which evaluates an individual’s aerobic endurance fitness.
It has been learnt that the selectors have kept a window open for him should he get back to fitness. He is there for a month and his training will end on November 28 after which he will take the Yoyo test. The Sri Lanka ODIS begin on December 10 which he seems to be eyeing.
As per earlier reports, Yuvraj had failed to make it to the India squad on account of failing the fitness test. The Yoyo test seems to have become a necessity in Virat Kohli’s side as the skipper is focused on fielding a fit India side in limited-overs cricket.
The veteran India all-rounder last played in national jersey on the tour of West Indies in Junejuly, making 39 in the third ODI in Antigua. India won that match. His last competitive cricket outing was for Punjab in the October 14-17 tie against Vidarbha where he failed to get going, making just 20 & 42 as his side was thrashed by an innings.
Yuvraj, who will turn 36 in December, may have smelt an opportunity after India struggled to find an option for the No. 4 slot.
Since the 2015 World Cup, India have used 11 batsmen in that slot (see box) and are yet to find a permanent solution. Manish Pandey has failed to get going and they tried Kedar Jadhav in Sri Lanka. But he too returned poor scores. They have tried Hardik Pandya but his credentials as a proper batsman are yet to be established.
Skipper Virat Kohli, however, doesn’t want to put Ajinkya Rahane in that slot as he feels, he needs him as an option to open the innings.
Incidentally, since the World Cup, Yuvraj has got the most number of runs in that position – 358 (see box). But 150 of those came in one innings against England earlier this year in Cuttack.