Heroics of Yuvraj Singh in cricket World Cup 2011

World Cup 2011 is an unforgettable experience for Indian cricket and its fans. In 2011, India lifted the WC after 28 years of dry span; the mighty Indian team conquered the biggest cricket tournament in the world. This win wouldn’t have been possible without the contributions of the Man of the Tournament Yuvraj Singh. The legend had his dream run in this tournament.

Yuvraj Singh was struggling with his form and consistency before the start of this tournament after he was dropped from the team for a series; many speculated that this might the end of his world cup chances. But the selection committee knew the power of Yuvraj Singh and selected him for the 15 man squad for World Cup.

1^st half of the tournament

The tournament started with a lot of hype. There was an excellent chance of India lifting the world cup as they had the home ground advantage. The second reason for this hype was, this would be the farewell WC for Sachin Tendulkar. The tournament’s first half saw the bowling heroics of Yuvraj Singh. Yuvraj took a five-wicket haul against Ireland, and this turned the match in favor of India. He took two wickets against the Netherlands and also scored 51 runs and became Man of the Match. He also scored great 58 runs against the powerful team of England and won the game for India.

2^nd half of the tournament

The second half was as good for him as the first half. He scored some crucial runs against West Indies and the defending champions Australia. Yuvraj scored 113 runs against WI and took two crucial wickets to break the partnership. He was the go-to option for skipper Dhoni to give him a breakthrough, and he did that every time on his will. Yuvraj scored in-pressure 57 against the defending champions and took two vital wickets and restricted Australia to a chaseable target.

The Finals

We can still hear the crowd cheering for India in the final against Sri Lanka. We all know the unbeatable partnership of M.S. Dhoni and Gautam Gambhir, but, Yuvi also had a crucial 54 run partnership with Dhoni at the end and sailed India to the victory. He also took two wickets of Kumar Sangakkara and Thilan Samaraweera. These wickets restricted them to a chaseable target despite the magical century of Mahela Jayawardene.

The unforgettable win

Yuvraj Singh was announced the Man of the Tournament, and his performance justified the honor given to him. Overall, he scored 330 runs in 9 innings and took 15 wickets. This made him the only all-rounder to do so in a World Cup. This world cup win made Sachin’s retirement more memorable, and the entire nation jumped in joy and excitement.

The years after the World Cup were difficult for Yuvraj as he had to fight a battle with cancer which he bravely fought and won, but lost his form in cricket. Indians still wait for this legend to show his might.

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