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Former batter Robin Uthappa has indirectly blamed Virat Kohli's captaincy for ending Yuvraj Singh's international cricket career following the star all-rounder's cancer struggle. Uthappa asserted that Kohli, the Indian team's captain then, turned down Yuvraj's plea for specific fitness adjustments after his cancer recovery. Yuvraj Singh, considered among India's best white-ball cricket players, was instrumental in the team's two World Cup victories under MS Dhoni's leadership. Yuvraj received a cancer diagnosis and had treatment in the US following his valiant exploits in the 2011 ODI World Cup.
Yuvraj defied the odds by recovering spectacularly and rejoining the Indian squad, even managing to score a century in an ODI match against England. He was passed over by the selectors, though, following a lacklustre showing in the 2017 Champions Trophy, and he eventually announced his retirement from international cricket in 2019.
Uthappa on Yuvraj's retirment
"Take Yuvi Pa's instance. The man beat cancer and was trying to make a comeback into the international side. He is the man who won us a World Cup-won us two World Cups, for that matter-along with the other players but played an integral role in helping us win. Then for such a player, when you become captain, you say his lung capacity has diminished and you have been with him when you have seen him struggle. Nobody has told me this, I observe things," Uthappa said during an interview with Lallantop
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"You have seen him struggle, then when you are captain, yes you have to maintain a level of standard, but there are always exceptions to the rule. Here is a man who deserves to be an exception because he is not just beaten and won you tournaments, but he has beaten cancer. He has beaten the hardest challenge in life in that sense. Some question room for someone like that," he added.
According to Uthappa, Yuvraj asked for a point deduction during the fitness test, but the team management gave in to his request. He passed the exam and rejoined the team but was dropped after a poor showing at the Champions Trophy in England.
"So when Yuvi requested for that two-point deduction, he didn't get it. Then he did the test because he was outside the team and they weren't taking him in. He passed the fitness test, came inside the team, had a lean tournament, took him out totally. Never entertained him after that. Whoever was in the leadership group, didn't entertain him. That time Virat was the leader and it went according to him due to his strong personality, and that time it was according to him," Uthappa said.
Uthappa made a big remark on Kohli's captaincy and said he has a 'my way or the highway' approach.
He said "I haven't played under Virat as a captain very much. But Virat as a captain, he was very 'my way or the highway' kind of a captain. It's not like these guys aren't also like that, but how to treat your team, how you treat your personnel, because it is not just about results."
Yuvraj Singh announced his retirement from international cricket back in 2019. He also last featured in an IPL edition in the same year, where he represented Mumbai Indians.
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