The swagger
is back, the voice is no longer feeble. The body is again showing signs
of being toned up. The weak smile of not-so-long-ago has turned to
deep-throated laughter. Yuvraj Singh is slowly getting close to being
his old self. Although something seems to have changed within, the man
declares that he’s the same person he was, and will always remain the
same. Read on… You have been through a life-changing experience.
What has changed in you?
I have realised how valuable life is, not just for the individual but also for his family and friends. I have also realised how important your family is, how they suffer as much as you do and how they stick with you. Basically, I care more about humanity now and can empathise with other people’s pain. I used to ignore my health a lot. But I won’t take it for granted anymore. I will also encourage others to be more careful.
Did you fear you might lose the battle against cancer?
It was tough initially. I did wonder sometimes if I would survive. It was tough, but I went through it, faced my fears and have come out, hopefully, as a much stronger person.
You have lived life in the fast lane. Will that change?
The perception about my lifestyle is media’s creation. It didn’t bother me in the past, and most certainly won’t now. My life is about my choices and decisions, not of anyone else. It’s something that’s never going to change.
How did it feel holding the bat again?
What has changed in you?
I have realised how valuable life is, not just for the individual but also for his family and friends. I have also realised how important your family is, how they suffer as much as you do and how they stick with you. Basically, I care more about humanity now and can empathise with other people’s pain. I used to ignore my health a lot. But I won’t take it for granted anymore. I will also encourage others to be more careful.
Did you fear you might lose the battle against cancer?
It was tough initially. I did wonder sometimes if I would survive. It was tough, but I went through it, faced my fears and have come out, hopefully, as a much stronger person.
You have lived life in the fast lane. Will that change?
The perception about my lifestyle is media’s creation. It didn’t bother me in the past, and most certainly won’t now. My life is about my choices and decisions, not of anyone else. It’s something that’s never going to change.
How did it feel holding the bat again?
It was an amazing feeling. I had often doubted if I was ever going
to pick up a bat again. When I finally walked into the nets and hit a
few balls, it simply felt out of the world.
Ambitions and insecurities are part of competitive sport. Will you deal with it differently than in the past?
Like everyone else, I used to worry about my performance and feel a bit insecure. But that’s all about it. That too I think will change now. I definitely want to play for India again, but I am not too worried. Whatever happens now can’t bother me much. I have won my life back, and that’s the biggest thing for me.
How much does Lance Armstrong’s remarkable comeback from cancer inspire you?
People shouldn’t expect me to do what Armstrong did. He came back and won seven Tour de France titles, I don’t know how. I have got my life back and will most certainly make the most of it, but I can’t say I will do something similar on a cricket field. I will though try as hard as I can and win as many games as possible for India.
How is your body responding to the training and fitness regime?
It’s like building a new body. It’s tough, but things are
improving with every session. I have worked on my fitness. Muscles have
stopped trembling. I need to gradually build strength too. Hopefully, in
two months I should be ready for the grind. I have set my eyes on the
T20 World Cup for comeback, but before that I would like assess my form
and fitness in the two T20s against New Zealand.
Ambitions and insecurities are part of competitive sport. Will you deal with it differently than in the past?
Like everyone else, I used to worry about my performance and feel a bit insecure. But that’s all about it. That too I think will change now. I definitely want to play for India again, but I am not too worried. Whatever happens now can’t bother me much. I have won my life back, and that’s the biggest thing for me.
How much does Lance Armstrong’s remarkable comeback from cancer inspire you?
People shouldn’t expect me to do what Armstrong did. He came back and won seven Tour de France titles, I don’t know how. I have got my life back and will most certainly make the most of it, but I can’t say I will do something similar on a cricket field. I will though try as hard as I can and win as many games as possible for India.
How is your body responding to the training and fitness regime?
It’s like building a new body. It’s tough, but things are
improving with every session. I have worked on my fitness. Muscles have
stopped trembling. I need to gradually build strength too. Hopefully, in
two months I should be ready for the grind. I have set my eyes on the
T20 World Cup for comeback, but before that I would like assess my form
and fitness in the two T20s against New Zealand.Launches battle against cancer
Having won his battle against cancer, Yuvraj Singh now wants to help
others to successfully wage their battles against the dreaded disease.
With this objective in mind, the dashing batsman launched a charity foundation, ‘YouWeCan’, on Saturday that aims to set up several cancer detection centres across the country and raise awareness about the disease.
With this objective in mind, the dashing batsman launched a charity foundation, ‘YouWeCan’, on Saturday that aims to set up several cancer detection centres across the country and raise awareness about the disease.
“The idea came from Lance Armstrong’s ‘Live Strong’ foundation. I
have endured a lot of pain and don’t want others to go through this.
Early detection and awareness will go a long way in saving many lives,”
said Yuvraj.
The initiative began taking shape even as he was battling it out in a U.S. hospital a few months back. That also explains why he fought his cancer in full public view, releasing his bald, puffed up pictures and tweeting about his treatment. “I wanted to tell them that if I can fight this and win, they could too.”
The initiative began taking shape even as he was battling it out in a U.S. hospital a few months back. That also explains why he fought his cancer in full public view, releasing his bald, puffed up pictures and tweeting about his treatment. “I wanted to tell them that if I can fight this and win, they could too.”
DRAVID IN FRAY FOR KHEL RATNA, YUVI FOR ARJUNA
Batting
great Rahul Dravid, who announced his international retirement recently,
is being recommended for the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award
by the BCCI which has also nominated Yuvraj Singh for the Arjuna award.
The BCCI will be sending in the nominations next week after the
government the deadline till July 20. The ministry and the cricket
administrators blamed each other when BCCI missed the original deadline.
Dravid retired from all forms of the game at the international
level following the Test series in Australia last year after having
accumulated over 23,000 runs in Tests and ODIs combined since making a
spectacular debut at Lord's in 1996.
“It's an honour that BCCI has nominated me for the Arjuna Award. This is the second time I will be nominated and I hope I am lucky enough to get it," Yuvraj said.
“It's an honour that BCCI has nominated me for the Arjuna Award. This is the second time I will be nominated and I hope I am lucky enough to get it," Yuvraj said.
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