Dhoni hails 'remarkable' Yuvraj

Skipper delighted by left-hander's return to form

Last updated: 19th February 2008

Yuvraj Singh India v Australia CB Series Feb 08

Yuvraj: powerful innings

The credit goes to Yuvraj. I did the finishing job but what he did was remarkable.

Mahendra Singh Dhoni
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Mahendra Singh Dhoni gave the credit for India's two-wicket victory over Sri Lanka in Adelaide to Yuvraj Singh.

Yuvraj came into the match having made just 37 runs in four previous innings, but returned to form with a stroke-filled 76 from 70 balls.

That helped India chase a target of 239. Skipper Dhoni (50no) completed the job with five balls to spare to boost his side's chances of making the finals of the triangular event.

"The credit goes to Yuvraj," Dhoni told Sky Sports. "I did the finishing job but what he did was remarkable.

"The sooner he comes back to form the better it is for the side. The way he batted dominated the innings was really excellent.

"That is what is expected of him, it's really good to see Yuvraj Singh score because you enjoy his batting."

Cheeky singles

Dhoni tested his recovery from a minor calf strain to the full with plenty of scampering between the wickets during a knock of 50 from 68 balls that did not feature a boundary.

"It's more fun when you are teasing the fielders, taking doubles, triples and cheeky singles," he added.

"I think that's more fun than hitting boundaries. Of course the boundaries here are big."

The result leaves India in second place in the points table with 12 from six matches, six above Sri Lanka who have played a game less. Australia lead the way with 17 points from five matches and are almost certain to reach the best-of-three finals.

"What we needed most was to get the confidence going, win some matches and get into the groove," added Dhoni.

Credit

Sri Lanka captain Mahela Jayawardene believed his side had emerged with credit despite the result.

"It was a very good game, we had opportunities but Yuvraj came in the middle and batted really well," said Jayawardene.

"We were probably 15 or 20 runs short today...but credit to our guys, we fought really well in this game."

Kumar Sangakkara collected the man-of-the-match award for his innings of 128 out of Sri Lanka's total of 238-6.

"When you score runs you always expect to be on the winning side," said Sangakkara. "When the team loses, everyone loses."

"It's good to score runs but I'd rather score less and win the game."