"I Said I Idolize Rahul Sir A Lot So Yuvi Got On To Me Immediately And Pulled My Leg Saying…" Suresh Raina Shares An Interesting Story

Published - 23 Jun 2023, 05:41 PM | Updated - 23 Aug 2024, 12:15 AM

Suresh Raina (Image Credits: Twitter)

Former Indian cricketer Suresh Raina shared an intriguing anecdote involving former captain Rahul Dravid and all-rounder Yuvraj Singh from his debut match for India in 2005. Suresh Raina recalled how Yuvraj Singh teased him when he mentioned Rahul Dravid as his cricketing idol.

Suresh Raina made his debut in a one-day international (ODI) for India against Sri Lanka at Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium in 2005. The left-handed batter played in the middle order. However, the southpaw was dismissed for a first-ball duck in Muttiah Muralitharan’s bowling.

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Speaking to the Home of Heroes’ show on JioCinema, Suresh Raina said that he was trolled by Yuvraj Singh while he was giving his speech in Dambulla.

“I got my India cap in 2005 from Rahul Bhai. I had to give a speech in front of Paaji, Viru Paa, Dada, VVS Laxman, Zaheer Bhai, Ashu Bhai, Anil Bhai, Yuvi Paa, Bhajju Paa, MS Dhoni had recently joined the team and Irfan Pathan. So, I started the usual spiel but was stopped midway and asked to name my favourite player,” Raina said.

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“I said I idolize Rahul sir a lot so Yuvi got on to me immediately and pulled my leg saying “The world’s best batsman and God of Cricket is sitting here, how is he not your favourite?” I clarified that Sachin Paaji was also one of the favourites but I had posters of Dravid on my wall. It was a very friendly banter and broke the ice for me,” he further added.

Suresh Raina was one of the finest fielders India has ever produced in international cricket. He was part of the ICC trophy-winning squad in the 2011 Cricket World Cup and the 2013 Champions Trophy. The swashbuckling batter announced his retirement from all formats of international cricket in August 2020.

The 36-year-old represented the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021. However, he went unsold in the IPL 2022 mega auction and retired from all forms of cricket in September 2022. He was part of CSK’s title-winning squad in four editions of the IPL, in 2010, 2011, 2018, and 2021.

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The Uttar Pradesh-born cricketer represented India in 18 Tests, 226 ODIs, and 78 T20Is in his 13-year illustrious career in international cricket. The former No. 3 batter scored 768 runs in red-ball cricket, 5,615 runs in the 50-over format, and 1,605 runs in the shorter format of the game.

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