IPL 2017, Match 1, SRH v RCB: CT Player of the match - Yuvraj Singh

The Indian Premier League season 10 got off to a magnificent start. The defending champions played like they are not going to be tamed and there was no pressure of them being the champions. While, on the other hand, Royal Challengers Bangalore were tamed but that was expected as half of their side is ousted due to injury.

However, the opening night of the 10^th year of IPL belonged to the prince of the Indian cricket. Yes, you guessed it right, Yuvraj Singh. He came in, he took guard and he conquered. With his wife watching from the high, Yuvraj was on song today. He smacked each and every bowler to the bits with amazing strokes. There were some personal records achieved as well.

On this night of Yuvraj’s, he played on what went on to be a match-winning innings for his side. Let us see how the night actually went for Yuvraj as we discuss CricTracker’s player of the match.

Yuvraj rolls back in time

If you have witnessed the Yuvraj of 2007 and the Yuvraj of today, you would have thought of it as a déjà vu. Clean strikes, back foot punches, glorious cover drives, handsome pulls you name it and Yuvraj was delivering it today. A guy who has been through a lot of ups and downs was finally back at his best.

This Yuvraj was recently seen against England where he smacked a brilliant century but IPL has seldom been the place for the southpaw to perform. He has not been his own during the IPL and no season has been his season so far but this performance on the opening night might just raise a few eyebrows. Will this really be his season? We will have to wait and watch.

All those crores finally paying off

Yuvraj Singh’s Indian Premier League career has been spread out over different teams. But it was during last year when Yuvraj finally found a team he could fit in and play for. The man from Chandigarh was snapped up by the Sunrisers Hyderabad for 7 crores after a bidding brawl with Royal Challengers Bangalore in last year’s auction and all those crores are finally reaping success.

Today we saw the Yuvraj of yesteryears, a fearless and merciless competitor who hardly let his opponents settle down. He was on the go from ball one and did not let the bowlers get the better of him. He was hitting each and every bowler to the boundary and Shane Watson was left clueless. The owners of the Sunrisers Hyderabad would be smiling as they were the only team that showed patience and faith in him and he is finally delivering it.

Also read| Twitter Reactions: Vintage Yuvraj, bowlers set-up Sunrisers victory

Fastest Fifty in the IPL for Yuvraj

Yuvraj was not his own in any of the previous seasons. One good fifty here and there and Yuvi was done for the season but today on the first day of the season Yuvraj has shown some signs of arriving at the IPL after 10 long years.

He registered his fastest fifty of the IPL today, with a fifty from 23 deliveries hitting Yuvraj went on to score 62 of just 27 deliveries. He hit 7 fours and 3 vintage sixes to get to his half-century. This kind of start to the IPL from Yuvraj will surely excite the SRH fans if Yuvi continues this form then they have season long entertainment to watch out for.

Classy Yuvraj

Yuvraj Singh showed what class it today. There is an angry Yuvraj, there is a competitive Yuvraj but there is also a classy Yuvraj. No, I am not talking about his batting style, I am talking about his on-field behavior.

The southpaw hit 17 runs off the debutant Aniket Choudhary who is the fruit of IPL scouts. This was his first ever game and he was hit for a lot of runs but Yuvi was classy enough to shake his hand after he finished his spell. The fans picked it up and it is still doing rounds on the social media.

Is this Yuvraj’s season?

The Orange Cap has been to all the best players in every season but it has not been privileged enough to go to Yuvraj Singh yet. Like mentioned before, IPL has not been Yuvraj’s tournament but that might change this season as he has gotten off to a fantastic start.

Scoring 62 off just 27 deliveries in the IPL opener will do a world of good to Yuvi’s confidence. Will he be fighting for the highest honor or will he fade away as the season grows old? Only time will then.

Anyhow, today’s fantastic innings from this outstanding individual have entertained us all. This has earned Yuvraj Singh 4 out of 5 stars for today’s magnificent effort.