Yusuf Pathan Made His Debut In A World T20 Final And Remained In His Younger Brother's Shadow

Imagine being in the squad for the first-ever World T20 and finally getting a chance to play in the final? That is what happened to Yusuf Pathan in 2007. Virender Sehwag's injury meant that he was playing as an opener in the title clash vs Pakistan.

Yusuf's international debut was nothing out of the ordinary. He made 15 and bowled 1 over for 5 runs. India won by 5 runs and it was his younger brother Irfan who took 3/16 to break Pakistan's back.

But over the years he developed a reputation as a finisher, a big hitter and also a useful bowler who could act as a filler and take wickets at times. But sadly he never achieved his full potential.

BCCI

For the most part of his career, Yusuf was in the shadow of Irfan. He never played Tests and only represented India in 79 ODIs and T20Is combined with his last appearance being in 2012. A talent that just never blossomed for the national team.

In the IPL however, it was a different story. Yusuf made an impact in the first edition in 2008 when he helped RR win the trophy. In 2010, he hit what was at that time the fastest IPL century. He won the IPL on two more occasions in 2012 and 2014, this time with KKR.

Over the course of time, he developed a reputation of a man who could go big in the death overs and that made him lethal in the T20 format. A pity that such performances were few and far between for India.

BCCI

While he does finish off with a reputation of being a power hitter, the fact that India did not make the best use of him is something that everyone regrets.