India’s victory at the 2011 World Cup will always be
remembered for Yuvraj Singh’s contribution. The match-winning champion entered
the cricket spectacular in poor form, but when the moment came for him to
shine, Yuvraj had a performance deserving of Player of the Series as India took
home the victory. In addition to showing a devastating touch throughout the
competition, hitting 362 runs, Yuvraj also showed he was a valuable asset with
the ball, taking 15 wickets. Despite the passage of twelve years, India is
still looking for Yuvraj Singh’s replacement. Discussions over “who will
fill Yuvraj’s shoes” have accelerated as the World Cup approaches.
A discussion over the damp outfield that caused the
India vs. Pakistan Asia Cup Super-Four match to be called off on Saturday
caused some eyebrows to raise. Sanjay Manjrekar and Waqar Younis, two ex-Indian
cricketers, engaged in a discussion about whether all-rounders Ravindra Jadeja
and Hardik Pandya can fill Yuvraj’s 2011 World Cup role. Waqar appeared to be
confident in Hardik’s abilities, while Manjrekar expressed a completely
different viewpoint.
“Look at what Hardik and Jadeja bring to the
table. They are well equipped with both bat and ball. Especially Hardik Pandya
– the way he batted against Pakistan – I think he is a really destructive
batter at No. 6. Any team would love to have someone like him. He is
aggressive, and now as we saw in the previous match, he is very sensible and
smart,” the former Pakistan pacer told the host broadcaster.
“He played like a champion. He took his time and
when the time was right, he pushed his natural game. I feel that these 2 at No.
6 and 7 will give India that push. All they want to do is not lose early
wickets. If you give these 2 last 10 overs, they can chase the game pretty
quickly.”