Out of form Indian batsman Yuvraj Singh conceded he is short on confidence and is not at the peak of his fitness.
Out of form Indian batsman Yuvraj Singh conceded he is short on confidence and is not at the peak of his fitness.
It was a combination of injuries and lack of form that made Yuvraj one of the biggest disappointments of the Indian Premier League III and the left-hander had no qualms admitting he was not his buoyant self.
"I am short on confidence in my batting and fielding. I haven't had a big knock. I accept I have not been in the greatest touch," Yuvraj said. "Last year was really upsetting. And injuries have made it very frustrating in the last five months. This is the time a batsman starts peaking but I am not. I am working hard and, the moment I break my barrier, I will be back," he told 'The Week'.
In absence of Virender Sehwag, who is nursing a shoulder injury, a lot would depend on Yuvraj in the Twenty20 World Cup in the West Indies and the left-hander assured he was just one good knock away from finding his form.
"I returned from my wrist injury straight into the IPL where you have to hit from the very first ball. It was hard on my wrist," he said. "Currently, my body is on the right track but I need to get a big score. I need to win a match to get back into the groove," Yuvraj explained.
The dashing Punjab player, otherwise known for his athleticism, had to sacrifice his favourite point position and field elsewhere in the IPL.
Yuvraj said he approached Jonty Rhodes, arguably the best fielder ever and now part of Mumbai Indians support staff, to find a way out.
"I told him I lacked confidence in fielding. He asked me to get back to basics and to stay low while fielding and practise a lot with tennis balls," he said.
Yuvraj said he was hurt by reports that he underperformed for Kings XI Punjab in IPL III and was sulking after losing captaincy to Kumar Sangakkara.
"It is a very strong allegation, very hurtful. It means you are betraying your country or team. That I won't take," he said.
On India's prospects in the Twenty20 World Cup, Yuvraj sounded optimistic.
u00a0"T20 is a very unpredictable format. We were very good on paper last time but we didn't show it on ground. This year too, it is the same case and we have a better bowling attack with Zaheer (Khan) and Ashish (Nehra). We have to prove it on the ground,"
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