Yusuf Pathan has been a stalwart in domestic cricket; however, failed to live up to the expectations in international cricket. The 57 ODIs and 22 T20Is veteran had the ability to clear grounds with ease and chip in with a few wickets with his gentle off-spin which made him a crucial campaigner in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
The veteran all-rounder’s association in the IPL dates back to 2008. He played a significant role with both bat and ball helping Shane Warner’s Rajasthan Royals lift the coveted title in the inaugural season. Yusuf Pathan then changed his base to Kolkata in 2010 where he won the title twice in 2012 and 2014 under the leadership of Gautam Gambhir.
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While a lot has changed since then, but for Yusuf, former Australia cricketer Shane Warne still remains the best. The legendary leg-spinner led a bunch of young domestic cricketers to glory in 2008. Pathan also rued the fact that he could not play more than three seasons under the leadership of Warne.
“I played for three years under Shane Warne in IPL. There are many memories with him. He used to guide us how to dismiss batsmen well before the game and we used to implement them and batsmen used to get out in a similar fashion,” Yusuf Pathan said during an Instagram Live chat with Cricktracker.
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“Unfortunately, I couldn’t play for more than three years under him. Without any big players, he took our team to the final and won the title in the inaugural edition, there were many domestic players and less international stars during that time in RR. Only a captain like him can win the title with a few resources around,” he added.
Furthermore, the fans also asked Yusuf Pathan to describe the two illustrious chapters of Indian cricket – MS Dhoni and Yuvraj Singh in one word. The veteran all-rounder narrated former India skipper Dhoni as ‘clever’ and when it came to Yuvraj, Yusuf decided to describe him as ‘rockstar’.
