Can Yuvraj overtake Tendulkar and others as India's all time best ODI batsman?

[Ram]

But let me just make one thing absolutely clear – The last time I posted something similar, I immediately got classified as a Sachin hater by one of the ardent fanatics. I find that quite strange because what part of me saying ‘Yuvi could end up as a better ODI batsmen than Sachin’ indicates that I do not respect Sachin’s exploits so far? Rather, it shows the kind of admiration (genuine or misplaced, we can debate about that) I have for Yuvraj’s impact on our ODI record for the last 7 years. So please , do not label me a Sachin hater for saying this. I have probably spent more time defending and praising Sachin than anyone else on this board.

[coffee_rules]

Didn't vote. I was looking for a option equivalent of - No, not in a million years. He should just look to overtake Dravid

[The Outsider]

I would pose a question to the OP - does he really think Yuvraj can become the best ODI batsman ever to have played the game or the second best if Richards is counted as the best?

[Sooda]

Well said Outsider. Because thats what the OP is saying. Can Yuvraj be the best ODi batsmen ever. forgetting SRT for a min- Better than Lara, Richards, Ponting amongst others. Btw Sriram- do quantify what you mean by 'best'... I think thats important to the way we answer

[jusarrived]

Ganguly , Dhoni , Yuvi & shewag ..are all better ODI players . Yuvi has been the most destructive batsmen in world cricket for the past 3-4 years & only Dhoni can match his match winning knocks imo ..these two are just class apart from all the ODI batsmen we have produced

[CSK Fan]

having said that if i was to chose a batsman to play under pressure and in a big game i would prefer yuvraj in my team..

Even though sachin has been far far ahead in that and UV's form goes down in big games?

[Mr. Wicket]

I stand by that statement. I did not claim it WILL happen' date=' I said it may happen. [/quote'] Take a stand instead of sitting on the fence. Anyone can sit on the fence and suggest plenty of things "could" happen without putting their necks on the line. And anything is a possibility. There is of course a statistical non-zero probability that Yuvraj could score 45 hundreds in his next 45 ODIs. The chance of this is of course astronomical, but it is of course a chance (like Pakistan theoretically has a chance of winning in Australia this year). But given the impact Sachin has had on the ODI game as one of the most revolutionary batsmen in ODI cricket, not to mention a two decade long career with some spectacular knocks in all conditions, against all opposition and regularly on some of the biggest stages for the game - it is ludicrous IMO to think Yuvraj can come close to even matching his feats and overall legacy as a batsman (purely in ODIs), forget overtaking him.

[davidcooper]

Even though sachin has been far far ahead in that and UV's form goes down in big games?

no, i said sachin has been far far ahead in terms of his record and consistent performances; however under pressure and in big games yuvraj has played more of the match winning innings [doesn't make yuvraj the greater player though]

[Jersey #10]

Let him increase his average to 45 odd then we can talk. This lad has not even gotten half the runs sachin has and people are already comparing.

[fineleg]

No. Tendulkar will remain India's all time best ODI batsman. Yuvi certainly has a big impact in ODIs and is a key player in limited overs, despite that he wont be able to match Tendulkars consistency and voracious run appetite over several years.

[Dirty_South]

looks who's back :yikes:

[Sooda]

Forget Indias best. Tendulkar is the best ODI batsman ever.

[Septimius Severus]

Forget Indias best. Tendulkar is the best ODI batsman ever.

er N0 IVA Richards.And you can put a Sir in front of that.

[Guest Hiten.]

er N0 IVA Richards.And you can put a Sir in front of that.

How about you put "Sir" on top of your shoulders and then elaborate yourself.

[Ram]

Take a stand instead of sitting on the fence. Anyone can sit on the fence and suggest plenty of things "could" happen without putting their necks on the line. And anything is a possibility. There is of course a statistical non-zero probability that Yuvraj could score 45 hundreds in his next 45 ODIs. The chance of this is of course astronomical, but it is of course a chance (like Pakistan theoretically has a chance of winning in Australia this year).

I think you’re slightly mistaken here. I actually DID take a stance, when I said Yuvraj has the possibility of overtaking Sachin as our best ever ODI bat (unlike the rest of the massive majority, who do not even want to consider that possibility). My reservations are only regarding whether such a thing will actually happen and not without reason. How am I to know what is going to happen in the respective careers of the two batsmen in their remaining periods? I have already clearly said – If there is even a REMOTE chance of my ‘prediction’ coming true, Sachin’s next 18 months must resemble somewhat his feats in ODI in the last 7 years and Yuvraj’s next 6-7 years to mirror or exceed his feats in the last 7 years. And that is a MASSIVE ‘If’ condition I am adding there. Again, whether my premise is accurate or misplaced, I am totally willing to debate it.

But given the impact Sachin has had on the ODI game as one of the most revolutionary batsmen in ODI cricket, not to mention a two decade long career with some spectacular knocks in all conditions, against all opposition and regularly on some of the biggest stages for the game - it is ludicrous IMO to think Yuvraj can come close to even matching his feats and overall legacy as a batsman (purely in ODIs), forget overtaking him.

Fair points, we can debate back and forth on that. And Sooda, in answering your question as to what ‘best’ means, let me just make clear upfront what my ‘best’ does NOT mean. It unequivocally does not mean stats (runs, 100s, 50s etc..) I am not going to indulge in a number crunching game, because I understand the futile nature of that exercise. Sachin’s stats are and will be, the benchmark of the future generations to come. I am looking at the overall impact of the player on our ODI record, their contributions in match-winning causes, under pressure and without it and their ability to deliver when the team needs it the most. I think it’s a fair statement to say that despite Sachin’s and Ganguly’s feats in ODI prior to 2002, we were never considered a formidable ODI team before 2003. Of course, whether Sachin and Ganguly are to blame for it, it’s a debatable question. Back in the ‘days’. But since 2002, which was when Yuvraj made his comeback into ODIs under Greg Chappell, there has been a transformational change in our ODI record, mainly due to the exploits of Yuvraj and Dhoni in the middle order and the rise in our fast bowling prowess. Sure, I am not delusional enough to give the entire credit for our success to Yuvraj, but I do sincerely believe that it was his brand of fearless batting in the middle overs that triggered our resurgence in ODIs, much like Sehwag’s exploits in the test arena. Since the rise of Yuvraj (and then Dhoni), we have begun to win games that we did not even come close to winning before (I am talking, among other things, run-chases). And Shwetabh, I understand that for my premise to come true, Yuvraj will have to end up as the best batsmen in the history of the game. For fairness sake, lets leave out comparisons across eras, because I think that is an inherently flawed exercise. Therefore, I am not going to compare Yuvraj and someone like say Richards – I do not enough about Richards to do so. So, I will stick only with Sachin, because a) I have extensively followed Sachin’s career, much like Yuvraj’s career and b) both of them belong to the similar eras.

[vvvslaxman]

er N0 IVA Richards.And you can put a Sir in front of that.

Tendulkar Richards Lara .... .. .. Praveen Kumar .... .... .... Courtney walsh .. ... Christ martin .... .... Imran Nazir

[The Outsider]

MM, for starters you see to have misconceptions about the strength of our ODI team from mid 90s to early 00s. We were an ordinary test side abroad, but were a very handy ODI team specially if you weigh in the fact that Srinath was the only decent fast bowler we had. Off the top of my head I can remember us winning several ODI tournaments like the Hero Cup, Independence Cup, Singer Cup, Sharjah Cup, Titan Cup all of which had very good teams in competition. Our W/L ratio would be lower during that time and we would have won less bilateral series, but when it came to performing and winning in multi nation tournaments we were pretty damn good. And the only multi nation tournaments we have been able to win after that phase have again been down to Tendulkar, except for the one off NatWest trophy.

[goose]

Another sad case of Tendulkar's latter incarnations playing havoc with an observer's grasp of just how great the batsman was.

[Mr. Wicket]

No. Tendulkar will remain India's all time best ODI batsman. Yuvi certainly has a big impact in ODIs and is a key player in limited overs, despite that he wont be able to match Tendulkars consistency and voracious run appetite over several years.

I agree with fineleg! *gasp* *faints*

[Septimius Severus]

How about you put "Sir" on top of your shoulders and then elaborate yourself.

cool story bro, but how about no, Sir.