‘I have no doubt in my ability’

One of India’s most potent middle-order batsman in the limited-overs format, Yuvraj Singh, has won his battle against cancer but his fight to regain his position in the national team is still on after being left out of the team for more than six months. “I am pretty focused on getting back in the team. I would like play as much domestic cricket as possible and hit peak form with the bat and in the field. I have no doubt about my ability, never had. People should not forget what we have done in the past,” he said at a promotional event in the capital on Friday. The smooth transition of the World Cup winning team, with the youngsters grabbing their chances with both hands hasn’t made it any easy. But Yuvraj, who played a crucial role in India’s triumphs in the 2007 World T20 and the World Cup in 2011, stressed on the need of seniors to lend balance to the team. India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s observation few days ago that age doesn’t matter as long as a player was fit has given a new sense of self-belief to Yuvraj and other seniors attempting a comeback. “I am happy the way the youngsters have performed. But it is the balance, which the experienced players bring in, that makes a good team. Dhoni might have said that about the team for the 2015 World Cup. Everyone understands the importance of a balanced team.” While the limited-overs home series against Australia in October is Yuvraj’s immediate target, he has set his eyes on making the 2015 World Cup squad, which will possibly be his last appearance at the quadrennial event. “I am not sure what is going to happen in the future. My target is to play as soon as possible. There are about one and a half years left for the World Cup and I think a lot of work can be done.” Yuvraj and pacer Zaheer Khan were recently in France on a training tour ahead of the domestic season and the former said that the duo wanted to be away from distractions that they were likely to face in India. “I wanted to play different sports, different training routine and foods. Something new would come up every day,” he said. On Arjun Tendulkar, who his father Sachin says has a batting style similar to the left-hander, Yuvraj said the youngster had inherited the passion for the game from the legend himself. “Sachin once said that Arjun batted like me. A couple of days back, I saw him bat in Chandigarh and he really reminded very much of myself when I was young. But his passion for the game, he has inherited from his father.”