Yuvraj Singh retires: Chandigarh boy bids goodbye

Yuvraj, who started playing cricket under his father and former Indian cricketer Yograj Singh at their Sector 11 home, trained at Sector 16 Cricket Stadium and DAV School, Sector 8, apart from DAV College.

Read | Farewell, People’s Champion

Yuvraj, who first came into limelight with a knock of 84 runs against Australia in the Champions Trophy in Kenya in 2000, played a vital role in India’s title win in 2007 T-20 World Cup in South Africa, where he smashed six sixes off Stuart Broad of England followed by 70 runs against Australia in semi-final.

In 2011 World Cup, Singh was the player of the tournament with 62 runs and 15 wickets and played in the World Cup suffering from cancer, which was revealed by tests later.

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“While winning the title for India in the 2011 World Cup remains to be his highest point in his career, it was followed by a tough and life-changing phase for him and me. He could not sleep during the World Cup due to the symptoms and when we got to know about cancer, it came as a shock for all of us. As a mother, you are always concerned about your child’s health and the first month in the USA was also the toughest for me. We would visit hospitals and get his test done alone and it was after a month that his friends and fellow cricketers visited him. He put those memories behind and made a comeback to the cricket field. Seeing him on the cricket field and representing India has been the biggest feeling for me too,” Shabnam said.

Post-the 2011 World cup, Yuvraj made his comeback into the Indian team and also played in IPL. The last time Yuvraj played an ODI was in 2017 when he played against West Indies. The left-handed batsman played in 132 matches in his IPL career and scored 2,750 runs and took 36 wickets.

“When Yuvraj made his debut for India in Kenya, I was scared and worried. He was in his teens and he was playing against some of the world’s best cricketers. I prayed during the match and later when he made 84 runs against Australia, he called me and he was very excited. It gave me some confidence and after all these years, I enjoyed watching him bat,” recalled Shabnam.