Former all-rounder of the Indian cricket team Yuvraj Singh says that he did not get the captaincy because of supporting Sachin Tendulkar. Not only this, he also lost the vice-captaincy. Not only this, the former all-rounder also claimed that in 2007, where did MS Dhoni come from and became the captain. Yuvraj Singh told that there was a time when he had to choose between Greg Chappell and Sachin Tendulkar. He supported Sachin Tendulkar. Some people of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) went through this exasperating and they lost the captaincy.
Yuvraj Singh was a part of the golden era of Indian cricket. His performances in the 2007 T20 World Cup and 2011 ODI World Cup were excellent. He was also the Player of the Tournament in the 2011 World Cup. were. However, Yuvraj Singh was never able to lead the Indian team as a full-time captain. He still regrets about this. According to him, he was a strong contender to become the captain.
It was indeed a surprising decision to make MS Dhoni the captain of Team India ahead of the 2007 T20 World Cup, as there were many players senior to the wicketkeeper-batsman in the team. One of them was Yuvraj Singh. He was also the vice-captain of Rahul Dravid-led Team India during the preceding tour of England. As Dravid was ruled out of the tournament along with several other senior players, Yuvraj seemed to be at the fore in the race to take over. However, the BCCI selectors went with Dhoni, which proved to be a masterstroke as the Men in Blue became the T20 World Cup champions.
Yuvraj Singh said that he had to pay the cost of captaining Team India for supporting Sachin Tendulkar in the Greg Chappell episode. Greg Chappell was the head coach of India from 2005 to 2007. His tenure was full of controversies. The former Australian captain had disputes with several senior players including Tendulkar. According to Yuvraj, he stood by his senior teammate. The BCCI office-bearers did not like it. As a result, he was removed from the post of vice-captain. Not only this, MS Dhoni was handed over the command of the team.
Yuvraj Singh told Sanjay Manjrekar during an interview on Sports18, ‘I wanted to become the captain. Then the Greg Chappell incident happened. Had to choose between Chappell or Sachin. I was probably the only player who supported my teammate. Some of the BCCI office-bearers did not like this. All I heard was that they would make anyone the captain, but not me. I’m not sure how true that is. But suddenly I was dropped from the vice-captaincy. Sehwag was not in the team. I thought I was going to be the captain. Don’t know where MS Dhoni came from.
Although, Prince made it clear that he was not worried about not leading India as MS Dhoni did a brilliant job. Yuvi said, “Viru (Virender Sehwag) was a senior, but he was not on the tour of England. I was the vice-captain of the ODI team, while Rahul (Dravid) was the captain. That’s why I wanted to be the captain. Obviously, it was a decision that went against me but I don’t regret it. Even today if the same thing happens, I will support my teammate.
Prince Said, ‘After that I had some injuries. Even if I was the captain, I would have gone out. The injuries bothered me. Whatever happens happens for good. I really don’t regret not captaining India. It would have been a huge honor, but I will always stand by my partner. If bad things are said about his character, I will always stand up for my partner.