Yuvraj Singh Opens Up On His Reaction After Seeing MS Dhoni Bat Ahead Of Him In 2011 WC Final
Updated - 03 Apr 2020, 01:14 PM
MS Dhoni promoting himself higher-up the order in the World Cup 2011 final is among the most celebrated decision in the history of Indian cricket. But at the same time, there is no denying that the decision still baffles many since the former India skipper took a huge gamble in such a huge game by promoting himself ahead of the in-form Yuvraj Singh.
Chasing 275, India got off to a horror start, losing Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar early to Lasith Malinga. However, Gautam Gambhir and Virat Kohli, who walked in at No. 4, steadied the ship and added 83 crucial runs. But just when things were looking fine, Kohli was sent back by Tilakaratne Dilshan.
And what followed thereafter left many surprised as Dhoni walked out to bat at No. 5 ahead of Yuvraj Singh. Unlike Yuvraj Singh, Dhoni was having a tough campaign and had scored just 150 runs in the lead up to the final. But the man delivered when it mattered the most and scored an unbeaten 91 to power India to a historic win.
More than 9 years after that famous decision from Dhoni, Yuvraj Singh recently opened up on it. And the batting legend has made it clear that he too was in favour of that decision. Yuvraj Singh said that with off-spinners operating in tandem, sending a right-hander was a sensible decision.
“You could hear a pin drop when Tendulkar got out, the crowd sensed that the cup was slipping away. But Gauti was so good that night, and he and Virat stitched together a good partnership. By then, all three of their off-spinners (Muttiah Muralitharan, Suraj Randiv and Tillakaratne Dilshan) had come on to bowl.
“Mahi, Gary and Sachin had a discussion on whether it was better for the right-handed Mahi to go in at the fall of a wicket because of the off-spinners, and when that decision was made, I was relieved that I didn’t have to go out to bat next,” Yuvraj Singh told Cricbuzz.
Also Read: Under MS Dhoni, I Was In His Ears Every Over: Virat Kohli To Kevin Pietersen
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