'I got to a stage when cricket was not helping me mentally' - Yuvraj Singh opens up on his retirement decision

Yuvraj Singh retired from all forms of cricket just a year back, but his career left us with several glorious moments to look back. He played over 300 ODIs for India and had a significant role in helping Indian cricket grow in the 2000s. For many people who had watched Yuvraj play, it was an emotional moment to watch him bid adieu to the sport.

In a recent interaction, the Punjab batsman finally revealed that made him take this decision. He revealed that he had reached a point where cricket wasn’t helping him mentally. The southpaw had been in and out of the Indian team since the 2011 World Cup.

He made a comeback after battling away with rare lung cancer and found himself out of the side in 2014 due to lack of form. He made brief comebacks in 2016 and 2017 before the selectors finally gave up on the southpaw.

“When you are at a fast pace in life, you don’t realise a lot of things. Suddenly you are like, what has happened here? I am sitting here at home for 2-3 months, obviously for different reasons,” Yuvraj said.

“I got to a stage when cricket was not helping me mentally. I always wanted to play cricket but it was not helping me stay in a good state of mind. I was dragging myself and thinking ‘when do I have to retire, should I retire, should I not retire, should I play for another season’,” added Yuvraj Singh while talking to Gaurav Kapur on the Oaktree Sports channel.

I hadn’t slept for many years and I tried to sleep really well: Yuvraj Singh

The former left-handed batsman talked how he misses playing cricket sometimes. He revealed that the fans send him messages which makes him believe that he has got a lot of respect from the fans. There is no doubt that ‘Yuvi’ was one of the most loved Indian cricketers.

He was a player who would be a fan-favourite, no matter how he played. His contributions in India’s triumph of 2007 T20 World Cup and 2011 Cricket World Cup made him an instant favourite among the fans.

“I miss the game sometimes, but I do not miss it very often because I have played it for so many years. I get so many messages for fans, so much love that I feel really blessed. More than anything the respect the game has given you, and if you are happy with that respect you have earned for the last 20 years, you think it’s the right time to move on,” said Yuvraj.

The 38-year-old even went on to say that he felt mentally free after retiring from the game. His last IPL season in 2019 was with Mumbai Indians (MI). Even though he didn’t play all the matches but the team went on to lift the trophy. Yuvraj later took part in Global T20 Canada and Abu Dhabi T10 League.

“So, I think the day I retired I was free, it was a very emotional moment, I can’t put that in words but certainly, I felt free after that, mentally very happy. I hadn’t slept for many years and I tried to sleep really well,” he concluded.

Here’s the clip: