Yuvi deserves place in Tests: Dhoni

[SachDan]

COLOMBO: For the second ODI series in succession, Yuvraj Singh has made a dashing impression. The two man-of-the-series awards are just reward for his all-round efforts. In the home series against England he raked up 325 runs in five matches (average 108.33), inclusive of two centuries, while in the five-match ODI series which concluded here on Sunday, he led the run charts with 284 runs (average 56.80), inclusive of one century and two fifty-plus scores. With such a stirring run of scores in the ODIs, it is only just that he gets a regular spot in the Test XI too. "He deserves a place in the Test side," agreed captain MS Dhoni, then went on to extol the virtues of having such a talented player in the side. "The good thing with him is that if he settles in he puts in a lot of pressure on the opposition. His bowling is a plus point and he is a brilliant fielder too," he said. Yuvraj himself said he was keen to dispel doubts that he could not play quality spin well. ‘‘Coming here the last time, I had a very bad series. I wanted to make a point this time and was determined to turn it around. "With my teammates and Sachin (Tendulkar) helping me a lot in the nets, I figured out how to effectively tackle the spinners," he said, ‘‘But I haven’t changed too many things in the game.’’ The slot left vacant by Sourav Ganguly’s retirement could be Yuvraj’s when the Test series begins in New Zealand in the last week of this month. "That (Sourav’s retirement) gives him an opportunity. Hopefully he can cash in on it. A batsman like him coming at No. 5 or No. 6 and who can support VVS Laxman will be of a big help." Dhoni also defended the inclusion of L Balaji and debutant Ravindra Jadeja for Sunday’s game. "Today we are in a situation in which we can give them (reserve players) a chance, it was not a forced thing. The objective was to let them experience international cricket so they mature as players. If they sit in the dressing room they won’t get that feel.’’

http://cricket.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Yuvi_deserves_place_in_Tests_Dhoni/articleshow/4096452.cms

[Guest Hiten.]

He knows how to handle 'superstars' in his team.

[Sachinism]

He knows how to handle 'superstars' in his team.

What he is saying is absolutely true, Yuvi definitely deserves a test spot in his current form, NZ conditions will be different, but still

[DomainK]

UV completely deserves his place in tests.....especially after his performance with Sachin against England.:two_thumbs_up:

[riya]

He is very good in Indian pitches .Not so sure about abroad.

[Guest dada_rocks]

Yuvi deserves hsi place in all teams heck if he can play murali mendis then noone else can fox him

[Mr. Wicket]

Doing damn well right now. Confident, making scores in both forms and showing plenty of consistency. The fact that he's settled may help him a lot; wasn't that long ago that he was in the position of playing for his place with every inning. Hope he does well in NZ.

[Ram]

Yuvraj CERTAINLY does deserve a place in the Test team, absolutely no doubts about that. But lets not get carried away at this point. There are still question marks over his technique against high quality seam bowling in test match conditions. Remember the royal working over Flintoff gave him in the second innings of the second test at Mohali? Freddie bowled quite an hostile spell and Yuvraj was found wanting sometimes (Not that other class batsman don’t struggle against good pace bowling. Sachin has had his fair share of problems, first against Mcgrath and then against Lee {who had lbw and bowled on many occasions last season]. Pownting was repeatedly pwned by a then rookie fast bowler named Ishant Sharma. Lara has had a noticeable proportion of encounters with Mcgrath again, with the same bowler once again proving to be the nemesis of Atherton. Kallis was made to look like straight guy in a gay bar by Flintoff last summer in England… And many more…. ) Unless Yuvraj can prove his test credentials in alien conditions against top quality bowling, there will clouds of lingering doubt hanging over him. But in sub continental conditions, he’s absolutely murderous against ANY attack.

[Mr. Wicket]

Most batsmen have some flaws against some thing or another. The successful ones are able to take their flaws within their stride, develop their game to compensate for those flaws and can keep making runs. Waugh had a short ball problem but could work around it. Sehwag is weaker against short pitched stuff at the body but knows how to adapt to his limitations and still is making runs. Yuvraj in the last few months seems to be developing his game further and adapting to some of his limitations. There was a period when he'd constantly try and counterattack spinners with sweeps, which would eventually just get him into trouble after a few boundaries. From his batting recently, he's appeared much more patient and willing to just graft hard for fewer runs but more time at the crease with less risk. If he keeps showing that same maturity there'll be a lot more words being eaten. As for the Flintoff comment, big deal. Flintoff's a world class paceman, and world class bowlers do that to all batsmen. Champions Trophy in India in 06 - McGrath made Tendulkar look almost hapless at points getting him for a tortured 10 with an amazing display of seam. Flintoff's worked over Tendulkar, Kallis and Ponting before, and that really doesn't bother me. I can't complain if Yuvraj gets undone in a truly brilliant spell, but what's frustrating is when he gets out to his own weaknesses - prodding outside off stump to balls that he could easily leave alone, or playing unnecessary sweeps to balls that he doesn't need to try and whack away. He's doing that less and less, and the results are great.