The Second Coming of Yuvraj Singh

The Second Coming of Yuvraj Singh

For once in a sporting contest, winning or losing didn’t really matter. This was all about one man, Yuvraj Singh, playing his first match for India since his very public battle with cancer.

But it wasn’t to be. Saturday’s Twenty20 against New Zealand was washed out by incessant rain. Now we must look to Chennai, where the second and final match of the T20 series takes place Tuesday.

The India Meteorological Department has forecast “partly cloudy sky with possibility of rain or thunderstorm.” In other words, the weather could do anything. But with a bit of luck, it won’t rain on Yuvi’s second attempt at a comeback parade.

After what the 30-year-old has been through, it’s the least he deserves. In the build-up to Saturday, which he described as his biggest day since last year’s World Cup final, Yuvraj was serenaded with good luck messages from people of all walks of life, from fellow cricketers and Bollywood stars to simple sports fans and the common man. He claims the support he received since a malignant tumor was discovered near his lungs last November had been invaluable in his recovery.

He thanked God, too, but that did little to stop the rain from pouring down on Visakhapatnam, the first time this southern Indian town had been chosen to host a T20 international. The crowd, many showing their support for the big-hitting all-rounder with signs like, “Goodbye Cancer, Welcome Back Sixer,” went home soaked and disappointed.

The two-match T20 series between India and New Zealand, now reduced to just one match, would be yet another inconsequential encounter in the crowded international cricket calendar if it weren’t for Yuvraj’s comeback and the fact that the T20 World Cup in Sri Lanka is just around the corner. These could be useful warm-up games if the rain stayed away.

Tuesday’s match might give an idea of how close Yuvraj is to his former glory and if he merits a starting place in India’s World Cup team, but it will be tough to tell from just one outing. The most important thing is for him to get back out on the pitch with his international colleagues. He’ll also continue to raise awareness for his cancer charity,Youwecan. “If Yuvi can, you can,” he says in a message to bring encouragement to other cancer sufferers.

He still has a couple more chances to showcase his old skills in the warm-up matches scheduled to take place in Sri Lanka in the next few days. India plays the hosts on Saturday and then Pakistan on Sept. 17. The tournament proper, in which India is in Group A with England and Afghanistan, starts on Sept. 18, when Sri Lanka will play Zimbabwe in Group C.

Regardless of what happens at this tournament, Yuvraj will always be inextricably linked to the T20 World Cup thanks to the six sixes he hit off England’s Stuart Broad in one over in the 2007 edition of the event in South Africa (anyone tuning in to the cricket on Saturday would have seen this incredible over being replayed on Star Cricket.) It would be a stirring encounter if the two come up against each other again when India plays England in Colombo on Sept. 23.

Nobody in their wildest dreams could picture a repeat of that innings, in which Yuvraj scored 58 off just 16 balls. Now we just want to see him healthy and back in action again. Hopefully the weather will oblige and Tuesday’s match in Chennai will be the first big step.