Former Indian all-rounder, Yuvraj Singh will not be participating in the upcoming domestic tournament- Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy as the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has turned down his request. The reason for the delay in the green signal is not officially mentioned yet.

The Story About Yuvraj Singh That Has Gone Viral

India’s 2011 World Cup star, Yuvraj Singh was set to come out of retirement and play some T20 cricket when he was included in Punjab’s probables of the Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy. According to a Times of India report, Singh had written to BCCI President Sourav Ganguly about the same. However, Yuvraj 39, who was training with the Punjab team last week will have to wait and sit out of the 2020-21 season as BCCI reportedly didn’t process the request in time, Sportscafe noted.

The Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) secretary Puneet Bali told Hindustan Times that Yuvraj Singh’s request is still under process. Reports do suggest that it was Bali who convinced Singh to make a comeback. Not just sit out of any cricketing action. The suggestions that went around said that the Chandigarh based cricketer’s experience and understanding would help youngsters if they played along with him.

What PCA Secretary Puneet Bali Told The Hindustan Times? 

This is not the first tournament the 39-year-old would’ve taken part in post-retirement. In fact, he showed wonders in the Global T20 League in Canada and in the T10 League in Abu Dhabi. He had issued a statement in September that maybe it was not yet time to call quits on the game.

“Yuvraj’s request is still under process with the BCCI.”

Yuvraj himself let out an official statement. It was showing his will to play some domestic matches. His intent is quite clear. He knows what he wants now. With that being said, hopefully, he can have things his way.

What Yuvraj Singh Said About The Whole Situation?

“Initially, I was not sure. I was done with domestic cricket, though I did want to continue to play in other domestic franchise-based leagues worldwide if I got permission from the BCCI. Also could not ignore Mr Bali’s request. I gave it a lot of thought, for nearly three or four weeks, and it was almost as if I did not even have to make a conscious decision in the end.”

He wanted Punjab to win a major trophy though it did not really happen. That would help unleash the potential of the players in the team. The motivation is to help Punjab win championships. He further went on to add that he and Bhajji had won major tournaments with Team India. However, it was time to push Punjab to new heights.

The Final Team For Punjab In The Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy

With no Yuvraj Singh, it will be Mandeep Singh leading the side. Further, it will be Gurkeerat Mann performing the deputy duties. The two will be expected to do really well after a good previous campaign.

Punjab team: Mandeep Singh (captain), Gurkeerat Mann (vice-captain), Rohan Marwaha, Abhinav Sharma, Prabhsimran Singh, Anmolpreet Singh, Anmol Malhotra, Sanvir Singh, Sandeep Sharma, Karan Kaila, Mayank Markande, Abhishek Sharma, Ramandeep Singh, Siddharth Kaul, Barinder Sran, Arshdeep Singh, Harpreet Brar, Baltej Dhanda, Krishan and Gitansh Khera.