Yuvraj returns as Punjab face stern Mumbai test

Two comebacks and a string of mixed performances later,Yuvraj,again,has turned to his state to rediscover his touch.

Yuvraj Singh came straight from the airport to the Sector 16 Stadium. He was back among his teammates after spending time in the nets. Harbhajan Singh,the Punjab skipper who will be playing together with Yuvraj after 11 years,was the first one to greet him.

Yuvraj last played for Punjab almost a year ago when he hit a scintillating century 131 against Madhya Pradesh in what was his lone Ranji outing last season.

A lot has happened since then.

Two comebacks and a string of mixed performances later,Yuvraj,again,has turned to his state to rediscover his touch.

After racking up the highest total 560 runs and largest victory an inning and 48 runs of round 1,Punjab will take on Ranji champions,Mumbai.

Mumbai coach Sulakshan Kulkarni reiterated that Mumbai will come up with a better performance against Punjab though they will be without Sachin Tendulkar who shepherded them home in the last match.

We will miss Sachin8217;s experience but it is opportunity for others to rise to the occasion, Kulkarni said.

Suryakumar Yadav has been named in the team in place of Sachin Tendulkar.

Story continues below this ad

One of the positives in Mumbai8217;s performance was Zaheer Khan8217;s bowling. He finished with five wickets in the match.

Harbhajan scripted an innings win for Punjab,finishing with nine wickets in the match. Centurions Mandeep Singh and Taruwar Kohli will also want to continue where they left off.

Punjab skipper Harbhajan backed Yuvraj to come up with a huge knock. It8217;s good to have Yuvraj in the team. When you have a big player in the team,the other players are also motivated, Harbhajan said.

Keeping the spinning track in mind,Punjab have included spinner Sarabjit Ladda while dropping VRV Singh from the 15-member squad.

Karnataka eye win

Story continues below this ad

Mysore: Hosts Karnataka will look to start their campaign on a winning note when they take on last year8217;s semi-finalists Jharkhand in a Group 8216;A8217; Ranji Trophy match at Gangotri Glades,here tomorrow. Karnataka,which lost to Saurashtra in the quater-finals last year,would be banking on K L Rahul and Mayank Agarwal to fix the puzzle of not finding a stable opening pair in recent times,especially in the absence of their batting star and India discard Robin Uthappa who is nursing a tender hamstring.

Battle of pacers

Jaipur: It will be a battle of pacers as two-time Ranji Trophy champions Rajasthan led by old warhorse Hrishikesh Kanitkar take on a Laxmi Ratan Shukla8217;s gritty Bengal side in a group B encounter of the Ranji Trophy at a seamer-friendly Sawai Man Singh Stadium here tomorrow. Rajasthan suffered an innings defeat in an away game against Saurashtra in their opening encounter. On the other hand,Bengal were unlucky as their match against Baroda was abandoned without a ball being bowled with groundsmen failing to prepare the Eden Gardens in time despite bright sunshine during four days of the match due to heavy downpour.