'Pakistani people sent their prayers for me while I was battling cancer' - Yuvraj Singh

It is fair to say that former Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh is a king of hearts. Everyone loves the southpaw. In fact, Yuvraj Singh was one of the few cricketers who transcended all boundaries when it came to garnering love from fans around the world.

The 2007 T20 World Cup and the 2011 World Cup-winning all-rounder retired from International cricket last year but the fans still continue to love him. The left-hander has now expressed gratitude towards all his fans from across the border for their love and blessings especially during the time when he was battling with rare germ-cell cancer in 2011-12.

Yuvraj was speaking to former Pakistan all-rounder Shahid Afridi on the latter’s Youtube channel where he revealed how being away from the game can take a toll on a cricketer. 

“I still remember when I was in the US for treatment and Twitter was new at that time. I posted something about my treatment and loads of Pakistani people sent their prayers for me,” Yuvraj said as quoted by Times Now.

Yuvraj Singh’s career was a tale of two contrasting and unfortunate halves

Yuvraj Singh was diagnosed with a rare germ cell cancer when he was at the peak of his career. His all-round display in the 2011 World Cup had paved the way towards realizing the 28-year-old dream of the entire nation. But, as they say, champions reveal their true character when they are pushed at the deep end. And, Yuvraj was certainly pushed to the deep end.

And, the southpaw, after successfully completing his treatment in the United States of America [USA], forced his way into the Indian set-up in 2012. However, the southpaw- thanks to cut-throat competition and his inconsistent returns- was never really able to nail down a permanent spot in the limited-overs set-up.

Yuvraj’s last International appearance for India came back in 2017 against the West Indies, following which he was dropped from the squad for failing to clear the ‘Yo-Yo’ test. The southpaw announced his retirement in July of last year, post which he has plied his trade in franchise-based leagues like Global Canada T20 and Abu Dhabi T10.