The spat between Ministry of Youth and Sports affairs and Board of Cricket Control of India (BCCI) has finally ended with the former extending the deadline for filing the nominations for Arjuna awards to accommodate cricketers in the list. BCCI had earlier failed to file their nomination by April 30 but now the deadline has been extended to July 20 so that they can receive nominations from the most popular sports in the country.

And now it has been learnt that they are contemplating to nominate Yuvraj Singh and Virat Kohli for the prestigious awards. And going by the state of affairs, Yuvraj does hold an edge and even Kohli has come out in support of his senior mate saying that if anyone deserves to win it in the team then it is Yuvraj Singh.

Well indeed he deserves every inch of that award. He has been the man who was going through a bad run of form going in the World Cup last year, but then he took the onus on himself to make India the World Champions after a gap of 28 years. And in these 28 years, a lot of great players donned the Indian colours but none could help the nation win it. Yuvraj scored 362 runs and took 15 wickets which helped him win the Player Of The Tournament Award.

To add to that Yuvraj, who is recuperating after undergoing treatment for a rare germ cell cancer, started feeling uneasy during the World Cup itself but then he made it a point to carry on and help the millions around the country realize their dreams.

And not only that, Yuvraj has won many matches for India over the years and has been one of the best finishers of the game. He had been in news for his flashy lifestyle but then he never let all that affect his game. He has gone out of the team many a times but then made successful comebacks. Such is his commitment for the team that he has already started practicing in the National Cricket Academy (NCA), Bangalore so that he could come join India’s squad for the T20 World Cup in Sri Lanka.

Now it is a known fact that if he joins the team, it would be highly beneficial for India. Everyone knows his prowess in this format of the game and he was also one of the key members of the squad which won the inaugural T20 World Cup in South Africa. He also entered the record books in the tournament after he hit six sixes off a Stuart Broad over.

Yuvraj, as it has been known for long, is someone who has never played for any sort of records and has always put the country ahead of himself. His whole comeback bid to the national team is a proof enough to that because it is not an easy task to do so, but then his love for the game and desire to serve the nation is what that has pushing him for the comeback.

Well Kohli also deserves to win the award because in such a short career, he has achieved so much and is one of the most consistent players of the team. But then Yuvraj deserves to win it before him because whatever Kohli is doing for the side, Yuvi had been doing it for almost a decade now and even Kohli would not mind if his senior mate is chosen for the award over.

By Samikshan Dutta Choudhury
Indian Sports News Network