MUMBAI, India (CMC) – Yuvraj Singh said India’s home series against West Indies will be crucial because it comes just prior to their tour of Australia later this year.
West Indies arrive on Thursday at the conclusion of their ongoing Test series in Bangladesh to play three Tests and five One-day Internationals against Indians.
“I’m looking forward to the West Indies series,” said Yuvraj. “It is an important series for us.
“We can take the confidence to Australia after doing well here. I’m looking forward to the series and doing well.
“I think in the last few years we have done very well in Test cricket. It was unfortunate that we lost 4-0 in England, but half the team was injured.”
Yuvraj said India had a lot of experienced players from whom young players could learn and he expected the home team to brush aside the visitors.
“Sachin (Tendulkar), Rahul (Dravid) and (V.V.S.) Laxman have done very well,” he said. “It’s time for youngsters to learn from them, do well against the West Indies and take the confidence to Australia.”
Yuvraj, a fixture in the One-day team, said he wanted to earn a name for himself in the longer version of the game.
He has played only 35 matches, scoring 1 709 runs at 35.60, despite being around for a long time.
Yuvraj has been out of action since fracturing his left index finger during the second Test against England at Trent Bridge.
He said he was recovering well and hoped to be fully fit by the time he took to the field against West Indies.
”I want to be a good Test cricketer,” he said. “I have done decently well, but I’m looking to improve my graph all the time in the next few years.
”It’s unfortunate, every time I have done well, I got injured. I fell sick in Sri Lanka (last year). It’s part of life and you have got to move on. I’m sure the more we play the better we become.”
Yuvraj said it was unfortunate that talismanic West Indies opener Chris Gayle will not be making the trip to India due to his ongoing tussle with the West Indies Cricket Board.
“Chris Gayle has scared bowlers all over the World,” he said. “It’s unfortunate that a guy like Chris Gayle is not playing Test cricket.
“It’s been lovely to interact with him. If he doesn’t feature in the series, it will be very unfortunate to not have him. He will be missed.”
Chris Gayle was overlooked for the West Indies Test side that will face the Indians. This follows the decision of the regional selection panel to persist with the same 15-member squad that is currently engaged in Bangladesh with Lendl Simmons returning home to nurse his back injury.
Gayle remains estranged from the regional side, following his dispute with the WICB over his comments on a Jamaican radio station last May.
The WICB has demanded an apology from Gayle for his remarks, but the opener refused, requesting to know for what should he apologise.