I want to be a good Test cricketer: Yuvraj

Yuvraj Singh played a stellar role in helping India win the 2011 World Cup. Now the swashbuckling left-hander wants to cement his place in the Test squad too.

The 29-year-old is one of India's most consistent performers in the limited-overs' format, but never been able to seal a permanent slot in the Test squad. He has scored 8051 runs in 274 ODIs, at an average of 37.62, as compared to his modest Test record of 1709 runs in 35 games, at an average of 35.60.

Injuries have also not helped, as was witnessed in England earlier this year. Yuvraj replaced the injured Gautam Gambhir for the second Test in Nottingham, before he injured his finger and was ruled out of action since then.

"It is unfortunate; every time I have done well, I got injured. I fell sick in Sri Lanka. It is part of life and you have got to move on," he says.

Photographs: Hitesh Harisinghani

Yuvraj has also fallen behind in the pecking order to youngsters like Suresh Raina and Virat Kohli in Tests, but after a superb all-round showing in the World Cup, he gets another chance to resurrect his Test career against the West Indies over the next few weeks.

And no wonder the dashing left-hander is desperate to get out in the middle and start firing with the bat.

"I am looking forward to play as soon as possible. The first Test against the West Indies starts on November 6th and I have been pushing really hard for the last couple of weeks. Hopefully, by the time I step on the field to bat, I will be 100 percent ready to go," he said, in Mumbai on Tuesday, where he was unveiled as ambassador for sports brand Puma.

"I am looking to score lots of runs, winning the matches against West Indies and taking that confidence to Australia," the left-hander added.

Despite being India's mainstay in ODIs, Yuvraj is desperate to make a mark in the longer version too.

"I want to be a good Test cricketer. I have done decently well, but I'm looking to improve my graph all the time in the next few years."

He also slammed the media for misquoting him at the inaugural Indian Formula One Grand Prix, where he was reported to have said F1 would never match cricket in terms of popularity.

"I think I have been misquoted. I never said that F1 popularity cannot match cricket. I had said that it would be difficult to match the popularity of cricket because it is a masses game and it has been there for so many years," the left-hander said.

And like everyone who witnessed the Indian GP, Yuvraj was full of praise for the mega event.

"The experience [at the Indian Grand Prix] was great. The sound of the engines really fascinated me. The first 15-20 laps I just stood still, I could not believe the sound of the engines could be so strong to the ears. It was a fascinating event and everybody really loved F1 and I hope it comes back soon."

Yuvraj also played down the issue of scheduling, which many feel was responsible for Indian players' latest injury woes, that played a part in their disastrous showing in England earlier this year.

"Whenever you want rest, you get it, so it is not an issue. But I think this is the best time of our life; the more cricket we play the more we enjoy and people of India will also enjoy. Whenever you need rest, you can ask for it and you get it, so there is no issue there," he said.

The left-hander also showed his support for Punjab team-mate Harbhajan Singh, who has been left out of India's ODI and Test squads.

"I think Harbhajan is a great bowler, I cannot give him any advice. He has taken 400 wickets in Test cricket. There are ups and downs. Bhajji is a strong person mentally and I am sure he will come back with a bang."

Quizzed about the toughest bowler he has faced, Yuvraj replied: "Muralitharan is the hardest bowler I have faced, but he has retired. Among the present lot, Zaheer Khan is difficult to play in the nets. I won't name bowlers from other teams, because then they will think we can get him out."