I would have slapped Dhoni, says Yuvraj Singh’s father

It seems the controversy over Yuvraj Singh’s exclusion from India’s 2015 World Cup squad is not going away anytime soon.

Days after the Indian media created a storm over the ace Indian cricketer’s omission from the 2015 tournament, Yuvraj’s father has put the blame squarely on captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni for dropping his son on personal will from the team.

“Dhoni was nothing. The media has crowned him as a great which he never deserved,” Yuvraj’s father Yograj Singh was quoted as saying in a report published by The Times of India.

“There was a time when he had nothing but today he sits in front of media and rips off the media persons. He laughs at media who has given him so much hype. He laughs at the Indian people who clap when he scores a run,” Yograj said.

“Honestly, if I were a media person, I would have slapped Dhoni right there,” he added.

Yuvraj was a key performer in India’s trail to the World Cup title in 2011 and was also awarded as the player of the tournament. But in 2015, he was not considered for selection along with senior players Gautam Gambhir, Harbhajan Singh, Virender Sehwag and Zaheer Khan.

Yograj went on to compare Dhoni to Ravana, the antagonist in Hindu spiritual book Ramayana.

“Dhoni is arrogant. The way Ravana’s pride came to an end, Dhoni will also suffer some day. He considers himself much above Ravana,” Yuvraj’s father said of the 33-year-old Indian captain.

“I feel really ashamed when other cricketers come and tell me about Dhoni. Earlier, I used to think that people must be cribbing about Dhoni due to jealousy. But when the cricketers told me about him, I think I have never seen a terrible person like him ever in my life,” he added.

Yograj also criticised the Indian captain’s decision to go out and bat at the number six slot in the World Cup 2011 final against Sri Lanka, while throughout the tournament, he batted at the number four slot.

“In the 2011 final, Yuvraj was going to bat but Dhoni stopped him and went to bat and became a hero. Why didn’t he bat at No. 4 this time? Why did he go at No. 6? If he considers himself great, then he should have batted at No. 6 and guided India to a win against the Aussies.”

“There will be a day when Dhoni will be left to beg and become penniless and would not get any favour,” Yograj said.

Yuvraj had to take to Twitter to clarify his position after his father’s claims stirred the cricket-crazy Indian nation.

“I [have] got nothing to do with statements coming out in the media! As I [have] said before enjoyed playing under Dhoni no issues at all,” the stylish left-handed batsman wrote on his official Twitter handle.