Paddy Upton reveals how Yuvraj Singh helped India realise its dream of winning the 2011 WC

Paddy Upton revealed how Yuvraj Singh prepared himself for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2011 that was won by India on the night of April 2, 2011, at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium. Yuvraj was adjudged Player of the Tournament for his all-round performance which included 362 runs and 15 scalps in nine matches. He starred in most of India's wins in that tournament. Yuvi had scored an unbeaten 57 against Australia in the quarterfinals and even though he was out for a golden duck in the semis against arch-rivals Pakistan, he made up for it with the ball by picking the important wickets of Younis Khan and Asad Shafiq.

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'He was ready': Paddy Upton

During an exclusive interview with a daily publication, Upton went on to say that Yuvraj had been dropped from the Test team about six months prior to the World Cup and instead of sulking over it, the stylish left-handed batsman focused on really working on his fitness and preparation for the World Cup and when he had arrived at the showpiece event, he was ready for it, physically, technically and especially mentally.

Upton, who was Team India's Strength & Conditioning coach during the 2011 World Cup also mentioned that the southpaw had spent literally every day for months imagining himself hitting the winning runs to win the World Cup for India.and according to the former Rajasthan Royals and Delhi Daredevils head coach it was Yuvraj's mental preparation and focus helped him stay in-tune with that goal, and not get distracted by his ailing health. 

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The 2011 World Cup final

Sri Lanka who were playing in their second straight World Cup final had posted a stiff total of 274/6 in their 50 overs. In reply, India got off to a horrendous start after big-hitter Virender Sehwag was dismissed for a second-ball duck by Lasith Malinga. The Men In Blue were in a spot of bother after Sachin Tendulkar's dismissal as the scorecard read 31/2. Gambhir then took the charge of scoring runs and was ably supported by a young Virat Kohli (35) as the duo added 83 runs for the third wicket stand.

After Kohli's dismissal, in a rather surprising move, MS Dhoni came out at number four ahead of an in-form Yuvraj Singh. The two were then involved in a 109-run fourth-wicket stand. Gautam Gambhir was castled by Thisara Perera for a 122-ball 97. However, it did not matter as the match was in India's grasp by then and MS Dhoni finished it in style by dispatching Nuwan Kulasekara into the stands as India won their second World Cup after a long wait of 28 years.

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