Twenty20 cricket has been dubbed as the batsmen's game. Bowlers hardly have a chance as the batsmen go all out to get the maximum runs in the short span of 20 overs.
But in conditions where the ball is doing a bit, the bowlers can still turn out to be match-winners, believes Yuvraj Singh.
Kings XI Punjab captain Yuvraj said the fast bowlers will play a big role in this year's Indian Premier League since the Twenty20 tournament would be played on the fast pitches in South Africa.
"This time all the teams are balanced but the conditions in South Africa will be different. The wickets will be faster and fast bowling will be very important for the teams. I think the bowlers will play a big role in this IPL," Yuvraj said in Mumbai on Saturday at a promotional event to announce sponsors for his IPL team.
The Indian left-hander also seemed unfazed by the fact that a few of his key Australian players like Shaun Marsh, James Hopes and Brett Lee might have to miss the first half of the tournament. The Australian team is scheduled to play Pakistan in five ODIs and a Twenty20 International in the UAE from April 22 to May 7.
"We have made it clear that international commitments come first for every player, so if anyone is called to play for their country we will not stop them. Many of our players are also coming back from injury so I can't say anything now about the make up of our team, but only when I will meet up with the rest of the squad," he said.
Yuvraj also revealed that the IPL would be a good practice for all the international stars before the all-important Twenty20 World Cup to be held in England in June.
"I think the IPL is a very important tournament looking forward to the Twenty20 World Cup. It has come at the right time before the World Cup.
All the teams will play 14 games each before the semi-finals so all the players will get a lot of practice," he said.
The left-hander said he has spoken to the Sri Lankan duo in his team, Kumar Sangakkkara and Mahela Jayawardene, who were attacked in Lahore by gunmen during their Test series in Pakistan. Yuvraj said the duo has recovered from that shocking incident and looking forward to playing for the Kings XI Punjab.
"I spoke to Sangakkara and Jayawardene recently and they are fine now. The incident was very shocking when I heard about it. I was batting with Dhoni in Napier when someone told me that Sangakkara was shot and my hands started shivering immediately and I just could not bat after that. I was later relieved to know that no one suffered serious injuries and thank God they are all fine now."
