Yograj Singh has accused Dhoni of destroying his son Yuvraj's cricketing career.
Yograj Singh has accused former India skipper MS Dhoni of ‘destroying’ his son Yuvraj Singh’s cricketing career on quite a few occasions in the media.
However, former BCCI chief selector Sandeep Patil has now addressed the issue, making it clear that Dhoni has no role to play in Yuvraj’s snub from the national side.
Patil served as the chairman of selectors from 2012 to 2016. During his tenure, the selection committee made bold decisions regarding the phasing out of senior players and fostering young talent. Among those sidelined from the team were Yuvraj, Gautam Gambhir and the legendary Sachin Tendulkar.
During an appearance on The Vicky Lalwani Show on YouTube, Patil recently opened up about Yuvraj’s exclusion, dismissing the claims that it was influenced by Dhoni.
"Not once, not during selection meetings, not on tour, not during matches, did Mahendra Singh Dhoni say drop Yuvraj Singh. I am going on the record," Patil said.
He also clarified that Dhoni did not push back or interfere when the committee made its call. "He had total confidence in the selection committee. He didn't say anything," Patil added.
Patil also responded to Yograj’s repeated criticism of Dhoni. "A father feeling strongly about his son is not wrong. But the blame is being placed in the wrong place," he remarked.
Yograj’s frustration with Dhoni has been well documented, holding the World Cup winning captain responsible for cutting short his son’s international career.
"I won't forgive MS Dhoni. He should look at his face in the mirror. He is a very big cricketer, but what he has done against my son, everything is coming out now; it can never be forgiven in life. I have never done two things in life - first, I have never forgiven anybody who has done wrong for me, and second, I have never hugged them in my life, be it my family members or my kids," Yograj said while talking to Zee Switch YouTube channel.
“That man (MS Dhoni) has destroyed the life of my son, who could have played four to five years more. I dare everyone to give birth to a son like Yuvraj. Even Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag have said in the past that there won't be another Yuvraj Singh. India should award him the Bharat Ratna for playing with cancer and winning the World Cup for the country,” he added.
Yuvraj Singh is widely regarded as one of the greatest white-ball cricketers produced by India. The southpaw represented India in 304 ODIs, scoring 8701 at an average of 36.56 with 14 centuries and 52 fifties.
Yuvraj played 58 T20Is for India and amassed 1177 runs. Despite not getting consistent chances, the left-hander featured in 40 Tests and scored 1900 runs at 33.93 with 3 tons and 11 half-centuries.
Yuvraj’s last appearance for India was in June 2017 while he announced his retirement from all forms of international cricket in June 2019.
While Yograj has often fired shots at Dhoni on public platforms, Yuvraj has not made such claims and always said positive things about his former captain and teammate.
Under Dhoni's leadership, Yuvraj played an instrumental role in India's historic 2007 T20 World Cup and 2011 ODI World Cup triumphs.