Timurid Dynasty تیموریان
Empire in Middle east and Central Asia
←   ←   ← 30px 1370–1526 →   →   →   →
Flag of the Timurid dynasty[a]
Timurid Dynasty at its greatest extent
Capital	Samarkand, Herat
Language(s)	Chaghatai (initially, limited) & Persian (major, official)
Religion	Islam
Government	Monarchy
Emir
- 1370–1405	Timur
- 1506–1507	Muzaffar Hussayn
Historical era	Medieval
- Founded by Timur	1370
- Samarkand conquered by Uzbeks under Muhammad Shaybani	1509
- Herat conquered by Shaybani	1507
- Disestablished	1526
Area
- 1405 est.[1]	4,400,000 km2 (1,698,849 sq mi)
a: Flag of the Timurid Empire according to the Catalan Atlas c. 1375

The Timurids (Persian: تیموریان‎), self-designated Gurkānī ^[2][3][4] (Persian: گوركانى‎), were a Persianate,^[5][6] Central Asian Sunni Muslim dynasty of Turco-Mongol lineage^[6][7][8][9] whose Timurid Empire included the whole of Iran, modern Afghanistan, and modern Central Asia, as well as large parts of contemporary Pakistan, Mesopotamia, Anatolia and the Caucasus. It was founded by the militant conqueror Timur (Tamerlane) in the 14th century.

The Timurids lost control of most of Persia to the Safavid dynasty in 1501, but members of the dynasty continued to rule parts of Central Asia, sometimes known as the Timurid Emirates. In the 16th century, the Timurid prince Babur, ruler of Ferghana, invaded present-day Pakistan and North India and founded the Mughal Empire. This came to rule most of North India until its decline after Aurangzeb in the early 18th century,^[10] and was formally dissolved by the British Raj after the Indian rebellion of 1857. Later princes of the dynasty predominantly used the title Mirza to show descent from the Amir.^[11]

Origins[link]

Timur on a miniature painting.

The origin of the Timurid dynasty goes back to the Mongol tribe known as Barlas, who were remnants of the original Mongol army of Genghis Khan.^[6][12][13] After the Mongol conquest of Central Asia, the Barlas settled in what is today southern Kazakhstan, from Shymkent to Taraz and Almaty, which then came to be known for a time as Moghulistan - "Land of Mongols" in Persian - and intermingled to a considerable degree with the local Turkic and Turkic-speaking population, so that at the time of Timur's reign the Barlas had become thoroughly Turkicized in terms of language and habits.

Additionally, by adopting Islam, the Central Asian Turks and Mongols adopted the Persian literary and high culture^[14] which had dominated Central Asia since the early days of Islamic influence. Persian literature was instrumental in the assimilation of the Timurid elite to the Perso-Islamic courtly culture.^[15]

Rise and fall[link]

History of Greater Iran
until the rise of modern nation-states
Pre-modern
Pre-Islamic  BCE Prehistory Proto-Elamite civilization 3200–2800 Elamite dynasties 2800–550 Bactria-Margiana Complex 2200–1700 Kingdom of Mannai 10th–7th cent. Median Empire 728–550 Achaemenid Empire 550–330 Seleucid Empire 330–150 Greco-Bactrian Kingdom 250-125 Parthian Empire 248–CE 224 CE Kushan Empire 30–275 Sassanid Empire 224–651 Hephthalite Empire 425–557 Kabul Shahi kingdom 565–879
Islamic  Patriarchal Caliphate 637–651 Umayyad Caliphate 661–750 Abbasid Caliphate 750–1258 Tahirid dynasty 821–873 Alavid dynasty 864–928 Saffarid dynasty 861–1003 Samanid dynasty 819–999 Ziyarid dynasty 928–1043 Buyid dynasty 934–1055 Ghaznavid Empire 975–1187 Ghurid dynasty 1149–1212 Seljuq Empire 1037–1194 Khwarazmian dynasty 1077–1231 Ilkhanate 1256–353 Kartids dynasty 1231–389 Muzaffarid dynasty 1314–1393 Chupanid dynasty 1337–1357 Jalayerid dynasty 1339–1432 Timurid Empire 1370–1506 Qara Qoyunlu Turcomans 1407–1468 Aq Qoyunlu Turcomans 1378–1508 Safavid Empire 1501–1722 Mughal Empire 1526–1857 Hotaki dynasty 1722–1729 Afsharid dynasty 1736–1750 Zand Dynasty 1750–1794 Durrani Empire 1794–1826 Qajar Dynasty 1794–1925

Timur conquered large parts of Transoxiana (in modern day Central Asia) and Khorasan (parts of modern day Afghanistan, Iran, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan) from 1363 onwards with various alliances (Samarkand in 1366, and Balkh in 1369), and was recognized as ruler over them in 1370. Acting officially in the name of the Mongol Chagatai ulus, he subjugated Transoxania and Khwarazm in the years that followed and began a campaign westwards in 1380. By 1389 he had removed the Kartids from Herat and advanced into mainland Persia from 1382 (capture of Isfahan in 1387, removal of the Muzaffarids from Shiraz in 1393, and expulsion of the Jalayirids from Baghdad). In 1394/95, he triumphed over the Golden Horde and enforced his sovereignty in the Caucasus, in 1398 subjugated Multan and Dipalpur in modern day Pakistan and in modern day India left Delhi in such ruin that it is said for two months "not a bird moved wing in the city".^[16] In 1400/01 conquered Aleppo, Damascus and eastern Anatolia, in 1401 destroyed Baghdad and in 1402 triumphed over the Ottomans at Ankara. In addition, he transformed Samarqand into a major capital. An estimated 17 million people may have died from his conquests.^[17]

Timur appointed his sons and grandsons to the main governorships of the different parts of his empire, and outsiders to some others. After his death the family quickly fell into disputes and civil wars, and many of the governorships became effectively independent, but Timurid rulers continued to dominate Persia, Afghanistan, Pakistan and much of Central Asia, though the Anatolian and Caucasian territories were lost by the 1430s. The North Indian territories were given by Timur to a non-family member as governor who founded the Sayyid dynasty of the Sultanate of Dehli, who remained vassals for a period but became essentially independent. Due to the fact that the Persian cities were desolated by wars, the seat of Persian culture was now in Samarkand and Herat. These cities became the center of the Timurid renaissance.^[8]

After the end of the Timurid Empire in 1506, the Mughal Empire was later established in Afghanistan and India by Babur in 1526, who was a descendant of Timur through his father and possibly a descendant of Genghis Khan through his mother. The dynasty he established is commonly known as the Mughal Dynasty. By the 17th century, the Mughal Empire ruled most of India, but later declined during the 18th century. The Timurid Dynasty came to an end in 1857, after the Mughal Empire was dissolved by the British Empire and Bahadur Shah II was exiled to Burma.

Culture[link]

Although the Timurids hailed from the Barlas tribe which was of Turkicized Mongol origin,^[18] they had embraced Persian culture,^[19] converted to Islam and resided in Turkestan and Khorasan. Thus, the Timurid era had a dual character,^[8] which reflected both the Turco-Mongol origins and the Persian literary, artistic, and courtly high culture of the dynasty.^[14][14][20]

Language[link]

During the Timurid era, Central Asian society was bifurcated and had divided the responsibilities of government and rule into military and civilian along ethnic lines. At least in the early stages, the military was almost exclusively Turko-Mongolian, and the civilian and administrative element was almost exclusively Persian. The spoken language shared by all the Turko-Mongolians throughout the area was Chaghatay. The political organization hearkened back to the steppe-nomadic system of patronage introduced by Genghis Khan.^[21] The major language of the period, however, was Persian, the native language of the Tājīk (Persian) component of society and the language of learning acquired by all literate and/or urban people. Already Timur was steeped in Persian culture^[22] and in most of the territories which he incorporated, Persian was the primary language of administration and literary culture. Thus the language of the settled "diwan" was Persian, and its scribes had to be thoroughly adept in Persian culture, whatever their ethnic origin.^[23] Persian became the official state language of the Timurid Empire^[14][20] and served as the language of administration, history, belles lettres, and poetry.^[24] The Chaghatay language was the native and "home language" of the Timurid family^[25] while Arabic served as the language par excellence of science, philosophy, theology and the religious sciences.^[26]

Literature[link]

Persian[link]

Illustration from Jāmī's "Rose Garden of the Pious", dated 1553. The image blends Persian poetry and Persian miniature into one, as is the norm for many works of the Timurid era.

Persian literature, especially Persian poetry occupied a central place in the process of assimilation of the Timurid elite to the Perso-Islamic courtly culture.^[27] The Timurid sultans, especially Šāhrukh Mīrzā and his son Mohammad Taragai Oloğ Beg, patronized Persian culture.^[14] Among the most important literary works of the Timurid era is the Persian biography of Timur, known as "Zafarnāmeh" (Persian: ظفرنامه‎), written by Sharaf ud-Dīn Alī Yazdī, which itself is based on an older "Zafarnāmeh" by Nizām al-Dīn Shāmī, the official biographer of Timur during his lifetime. The most famous poet of the Timurid era was Nūr ud-Dīn Jāmī, the last great medieval Sufi mystic of Persia and one of the greatest in Persian poetry. In addition, some of the astronomical works of the Timurid sultan Ulugh Beg were written in Persian, although the bulk of it was published in Arabic.^[28] The Timurid ruler Baysunğur also commissioned a new edition of the Persian national epic Shāhnāmeh, known as Shāhnāmeh of Baysunğur, and wrote an introduction to it. According to T. Lenz:^[29]

Chagatay[link]

The Timurids also played a very important role in the history of Turkic literature. Based on the established Persian literary tradition, a national Turkic literature was developed in the Chagatay language. Chagatay poets such as Mīr Alī Sher Nawā'ī, Sultan Husayn Bāyqarā, and Zāher ud-Dīn Bābur encouraged other Turkic-speaking poets to write in their own vernacular in addition to Arabic and Persian.^{[8][30][31][32]} The Bāburnāma, the autobiography of Bābur (although being highly Persianized in its sentence structure, morphology, and vocabulary),^[33] as well as Mīr Alī Sher Nawā'ī's Chagatay poetry are among the best-known Turkic literary works and have influenced many others.

Art[link]

During the reign of the Timurids, the golden age of Persian painting was ushered.^[34] During this period — and analogous to the developments in Safavid Persia — Chinese art and artists had a significant influence on Persian art.^[8] Timurid artists refined the Persian art of the book, which combines paper, calligraphy, illumination, illustration and binding in a brilliant and colourful whole.^[35] It was the Mongol ethnicity of the Chaghatayid and Timurid Khans that is the source of the stylistic depiction Persian art during the Middle Ages. These same Mongols intermarried with the Persians and Turks of Central Asia, even adopting their religion and languages. Yet their simple control of the world at that time, particularly in the 13–15th centuries, reflected itself in the idealised appearance of Persians as Mongols. Though the ethnic make-up gradually blended into the Iranian and Mesopotamian local populations, the Mongol stylism continued well after, and crossed into Asia Minor and even North Africa.

Architecture[link]

In the realm of architecture, the Timurids drew on and developed many Seljuq traditions. Turquoise and blue tiles forming intricate linear and geometric patterns decorated the facades of buildings. Sometimes the interior was decorated similarly, with painting and stucco relief further enriching the effect.^[7] Timurid architecture is the pinnacle of Islamic art in Central Asia. Spectacular and stately edifices erected by Timur and his successors in Samarkand and Herat helped to disseminate the influence of the Ilkhanid school of art in India, thus giving rise to the celebrated Mughal (or Mongol) school of architecture. Timurid architecture started with the sanctuary of Ahmed Yasawi in present-day Kazakhstan and culminated in Timur's mausoleum Gur-e Amir in Samarkand. Timur's Gur-I Mir, the 14th-century mausoleum of the conqueror is covered with ‘’turquoise Persian tiles’’^[36] Nearby, in the center of the ancient town, a Persian style Madrassa (religious school)^[36] and a Persian style Mosque^[36] by Ulugh Beg is observed. The mausoleum of Timurid princes, with their turquoise and blue-tiled domes remain among the most refined and exquisite Persian architecture.^[37] Axial symmetry is a characteristic of all major Timurid structures, notably the Shāh-e Zenda in Samarkand, the Musallah complex in Herat, and the mosque of Gowhar Shād in Mashhad. Double domes of various shapes abound, and the outsides are perfused with brilliant colors. Timur's dominance of the region strengthened the influence of his capital and Persian architecture upon India.^[38]

Rulers and heads of the dynasty[link]

• • Green Rows Signifies rulers of the Original Timurid Empire.

• • Abu Sa'id's sons divided Transoxiana upon his death, into Samarkand, Bukhara, Hissar, Balkh, Kabul and Farghana.

Governors of Iraq-e-Ajam/Iraq-e-Arab/Fars/Azerbaijan & other Persian Territories[link]

• Qaidu bin Pir Muhammad bin Jahāngīr 808–811 AH
• Abu Bakr bin Mīrān Shāh 1405–07 (807–09 AH)
• Pir Muhammad bin Umar Sheikh 807–12 AH
• Rustam 812–17 AH
• Sikandar 812–17 AH
• Alaudaullah 851 AH
• Abu Bakr bin Muhammad 851 AH
• Sultān Muhammad 850–55 AH
• Muhammad bin Hussayn 903–06 AH
• Abul A'la Fereydūn Hussayn 911–12 AH
• Muhammad Mohsin Khān 911–12 AH
• Muhammad Zamān Khān 920–23 AH
• Shāhrukh II bin Abu Sa’id 896–97 AH
• Ulugh Beg Kābulī 873–907 AH
• Sultān Uways 1508–22 (913–27 AH)

See also[link]

• History of Iran
• List of Sunni Muslim dynasties

References and notes[link]

Further reading[link]

• Baysonghori Shahnameh in Encyclopædia Iranica
• Elliot, Sir H. M.; edited by Dowson, John. The History of India, as Told by Its Own Historians. The Muhammadan Period; published by London Trubner Company 1867–77. (Online Copy: The History of India, as Told by Its Own Historians. The Muhammadan Period; by Sir H. M. Elliot; Edited by John Dowson; London Trubner Company 1867–1877 — This online copy has been posted by: The Packard Humanities Institute; Persian Texts in Translation; Also find other historical books: Author List and Title List)

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Timurid dynasty or Timurid Empire

External links[link]

• Timurid Dynasty
• Timurid Art
• Virtual Art Exhibit
• Chronology of Herat rulers
• royalark
• Timurid genealogy

v t e Iran topics History Pre-Islamic Prehistory Proto-Elamite civilization BCE 3200– BCE 2800 Elamite dynasties BCE 2800– BCE 550 Bactria-Margiana Complex BCE 2200– BCE 1700 Kingdom of Mannai BCE 10th– BCE 7th cent. Median Empire BCE 728– BCE 550 Achaemenid Empire BCE 550– BCE 330 Seleucid Empire BCE 330– BCE 150 Greco-Bactrian Kingdom BCE 250– BCE 125 Parthian Empire BCE 248–CE 224 Kushan Empire CE 30–CE 275 Sassanid Empire CE 224–CE 651 Hephthalite Empire CE 425–CE 557 Kabul Shahi kingdom CE 565–CE 879 Islamic Patriarchal Caliphate 637–651 Umayyad Caliphate 661–750 Abbasid Caliphate 750–1258 Tahirid dynasty 821–873 Alavid dynasty 864–928 Saffarid dynasty 861–1003 Samanid dynasty 819–999 Ziyarid dynasty 928–1043 Buyid dynasty 934–1055 Ghaznavid Empire 975–1187 Ghori dynasty 1149–1212 Seljuk Empire 1037–1194 Khwarezmid dynasty 1077–1231 Ilkhanate 1256–1335 Kartids dynasty 1231–1389 Ottoman Empire 1299–1923 Muzaffarid dynasty 1314–1393 Chupanid dynasty 1337–1357 Jalayerid dynasty 1339–1432 Timurid Empire 1370–1506 Qara Qoyunlu Turcomans 1375–1468 Aq Qoyunlu Turcomans 1378–1508 Safavid Empire 1501–1722 or 1736 Hotaki dynasty 1722–1729 Afsharid dynasty 1736–1750 Zand Dynasty 1750–1794 Durrani Empire 1794–1826 Qajar Dynasty 1794–1925 Modern Pahlavi dynasty 1925–1979 Interim Government of Iran 1979 Islamic Republic of Iran 1979–present See also Ancient Iran Iranian Cultural Continent Indo-Iranians (languages) Jiroft civilization Aryans Persian peoples Tajik people Iranian peoples Kings of Persia Military history Years in Iran Politics Government Intellectual movements Women's movement Elections Constitution Supreme Leader President Judicial system Assembly of Experts Parliament Guardian Council Expediency Discernment Council Supreme National Security Council City and Village Councils Human rights LGBT Officials Provincial governors Reformists Principlists United Nations Security Council Resolution 1747 Ambassadors Foreign relations Ministry of Intelligence Terrorism Military Army Air Force Navy Censorship Nuclear program Allegations of state terrorism Iranian Green Revolution Anglo-Iranian Oil Company Operation Ajax White Revolution Iranian Revolution Embassy siege Iran-Iraq war Iran Air Flight 655 1987 massacre of Iranian pilgrims Chicago's Persian heritage crisis History of the Islamic Republic of Iran Iranian Presidential Election, 2009 Persian Constitutional Revolution Propaganda Demographics Iranian citizens abroad Religion Muslims Bahá'ís Christians Azerbaijanis Armenians Persian Jews Ethnic minorities Religious minorities Zoroastrians persecution Women Languages Persian language Iranian Languages Azerbaijani Language Armenian Language Indo-Iranian languages Geography Cities list Iranian Azerbaijan Iranian Balochistan Iranian Kurdistan Iranian Plateau Islands Mountains Provinces Earthquakes Wildlife Economy Economic history of Iran Agriculture Fruit Industry Water and sanitation Health care Central bank Companies automobile manufacturers Banks Research centers Brain drain Iran Electronics Industries (IEI) Military equipment IDRO National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) Iran Aviation Industries Organization (IAIO) Space Milad Tower and complex Military exports Rial Tehran Stock Exchange Electronic banking Intellectual property International Oil Bourse Bonyad Asalouyeh industrial corridor Kish Island Free Trade Zone Chabahar Free Trade-Industrial Zone Labor and tax laws Economic Cooperation Organization (ECO) Mining Construction Privatization Foreign Direct Investment Supreme Audit Court Communications Telecommunication Company of Iran (TCI) Transport Railways Metro Airlines Iran Shipping Lines Energy Petroleum industry Nuclear program Tourism Environmental issues Economic Reform Plan Middle East economy List of major economic laws in Iran Iran and WTO Economic history of Iran Society Culture Iranian nationality Iranology Education Higher Science Scientists and scholars Universities Philosophy List of Iranians Literature Media News agencies student newspapers Architecture architects Achaemenid architecture Art modern/contemporary Persian gardens Cinema Cuisine Public holidays National symbols Opium consumption Music Ey Iran Heavy metal Persian traditional music Folk Pop Rap and hip-hop Rock and alternative Blogs Mythology Folklore Islam Islamization Scouting Sport Football Other topics Calendar Persian New Year Crown jewels Anti-Iranianism Persian names Tehrangeles International rankings of Iran Sorood-e Shahanshahi Iran Portal

Yuvraj Singh

Personal information
Born	(1981-12-12) 12 December 1981 (age 30) Chandigarh, India
Nickname	Yuvi
Height	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Batting style	Left-handed
Bowling style	Slow left arm orthodox
Role	Batting All-rounder
Relations	Yograj Singh (father)
International information
National side	India
Test debut (cap 247)	16 October 2003 v New Zealand
Last Test	14 Nov 2011 v West Indies
ODI debut (cap 134)	3 October 2000 v Kenya
Last ODI	2 April 2011 v Sri Lanka
Domestic team information
Years	Team
1996–	Punjab
2003	Yorkshire
2008–2010	Kings XI Punjab
2011	Pune Warriors
Career statistics
Competition	Test	ODIs	FC	List A
Matches	35	274	97	344
Runs scored	1,709	8,051	6,114	1,0236
Batting average	35.60	37.62	44.62	38.05
100s/50s	3/10	13/49	18/30	17/62
Top score	169	139	209	172
Balls bowled	823	4,832	2,113	5,901
Wickets	9	109	21	143
Bowling average	53.66	37.24	57.66	34.51
5 wickets in innings	0	1	0	1
10 wickets in match	0	0	0	0
Best bowling	2/9	2-09	3/25	5/31
Catches/stumpings	31/–	84/–	93/–	106/–
Source: Cricinfo, 16 August 2011

Yuvraj Singh  pronunciation (help·info) (born 12 December 1981) is an Indian cricketer, and the son of former Indian fast bowler and Punjabi movie star Yograj Singh.^[1] He has been a member of the Indian cricket team since 2000 (ODIs) and played his first Test match in 2003. He was the vice-captain of the ODI team from late-2007 to late-2008. At the 2007 World Twenty20 he hit six sixes in an over against England's Stuart Broad—a feat performed only three times previously in any form of senior cricket, and previously never in an international match between two Test cricket nations. He was named the Man of the Tournament in the 2011 Cricket World Cup.

He was recently diagnosed with a cancerous tumor (Stage-I) in his left lung and underwent chemotherapy treatment at the Cancer Research Institute in Boston, USA.^[2][3] On March 18, 2012 Yuvraj Singh discharged from hospital after completing the third and final cycle of chemotherapy to recover from a rare germ cell cancer in Boston, USA.^[4] On April 9, 2012 Yuvraj Singh returned home after undergoing treatment for rare germ cell cancer in the United States.^[5]

Early career[link]

Yuvraj first came to attention when he captained the Under-19 Punjab cricket team in the final of the Cooch-Behar Trophy against Bihar U-19s, in which he scored 358 at the Keenan Stadium in Jamshedpur.^[6] He then gained selection for the U-19 World Cup in Sri Lanka in January 2000, where he was part of a team led by Mohammed Kaif which won the tournament.^[7]Yuvraj was hero of the tournament. Yuvraj was subsequently selected in 2000 for the first intake of the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore.^[8]

Test career[link]

An innings-by-innings breakdown of Yuvraj's Test match batting career up to February 2008, showing runs scored (red bars) and the average of the last ten innings (blue line).

Yuvraj made his Test debut against New Zealand in Mohali in late 2003 in front of his home crowd in Punjab due to the absence of regular captain Sourav Ganguly.^[9] He was omitted upon Ganguly's return but got another opportunity in the Test team in the 2004 Tour to Pakistan, when Ganguly was again injured. He scored his first Test century in a losing effort against Pakistan in the second Test at Lahore. When Ganguly returned for the third Test, Akash Chopra was dropped and it appeared that the Indian selectors wanted to give him a regular place in the team. He was subsequently played as Virender Sehwag's opening partner, but after two poor matches in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia,^[10] he was dropped in favour of Gautam Gambhir. He was recalled to the Test team, batting in the No. 6 position for the away series against Zimbabwe in August 2005 after Sachin Tendulkar was sidelined with tennis elbow. He then retained his position in the Test team after Ganguly was axed following a row with coach Greg Chappell. He scored a second Test century in the third and final Test in Pakistan in the series in January 2006, which India again lost. However, Yuvraj has struggled subsequently in 2006, failing to pass 50 in six Tests against England (two, both at home) and the West Indies (four, all away from home). His injury in late 2006 allowed the return of former captain Ganguly to the team, who subsequently top-scored in the series.

Yuvraj was included in India's Test squad to face Pakistan in November 2007, but was not included in the playing 11 for the first test. Yuvraj was picked in the 3rd Test due to an injured Sachin Tendulkar. India were 61/4 before he and Sourav Ganguly made a 300 run partnership with Yuvraj recording his highest Test score of 169. He had a very poor Test series against Australia when India toured in 2007–08. After his poor showing in the first two Tests he was dropped for the remainder of the series. Yuvraj scored 85 not out and put on an unbroken partnership of 163 with Sachin Tendulkar to defeat England in the First Test at Chennai on 15 December 2008. It was the fourth highest successful run chase in history and the highest in India.

Yuvraj has taken a number of important wickets with his left-arm spin. Two "soft" dismissals of Kevin Pietersen in 2008, led to controversy. Pietersen, then the England captain, "labelled Yuvraj a "pie-chucker" and suggested that he was a purveyor of "left-arm filth".^[11]

Twenty20 career[link]

On 19 September 2007 against England in the ICC World Twenty20 Super 8 match held at Kingsmead in Durban, he hit 6 'SIXES' in an over up against Stuart Broad. This helped him to reach the fastest fifty ever in Twenty20 game, off just 12 balls and also the fastest in any form of international cricket.^[12][13][14] This was the fourth time that six sixes had been hit in one over in senior cricket, the first time in Twenty20 cricket, and the first time in any form of international cricket against a bowler from a Test playing nation. He has also hit the longest six of the tournament: 119 metres (390 ft) off of Australian bowler Brett Lee.^{[citation needed]} Yuvraj was awarded a Porsche 911 for his 6 sixes achievement by the Vice President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Lalit Modi. Yuvraj also received Rs.10,000,000 (US$252,716) in cash from the BCCI for his performance in the tournament.^[15] He is also the first Indian player to cross 100 Sixes in Twenty 20 matches.

Yuvraj also scored 70 runs off 30 balls and went on to claim the Man of the Match against Australia in the World Twenty20 semifinals at Durban.^[16]

He was the icon player and captain for Indian Premier League (IPL) team Kings XI Punjab in the first two seasons; in 2010, the third season, icon player status was abolished and the captaincy given to Kumar Sangakkara. They came second in the round robin phase of the tournament, but lost their semi-final to the Chennai Super Kings. On 1 May 2009, Yuvraj picked up his first hat-trick in T20 cricket against Royal Challengers Bangalore at Kingsmead in Durban, the same ground where he hit his six sixes. He dismissed Robin Uthappa, Mark Boucher and Jacques Kallis. On 17 May 2009, Yuvraj picked up his second Twenty20 hat-trick against Deccan Chargers at the Wanderers Stadium in Johannesburg. Yuvraj dismissed Herschelle Gibbs, Andrew Symonds and Venugopal Rao.

The Pune Warriors were a new team introduced for the 2011 IPL. Yuvraj Singh was bought by the team and chosen as captain.^[17] Pune Warriors finished ninth, ahead of only the Delhi Daredevils.^[18] From 14 matches, Yuvraj scored 343 runs at an average of 34.30, including two half-centuries.^[19] After much controversy BCCI has allowed Pune Warriors to have his replacement for 2012 Indian Premier League, citing his medical condition and nonavailability for 2012 IPL due to the same.^[20]

Style of Play[link]

Yuvraj during fielding practice.

Yuvraj is primarily a left-handed batsman but can bowl part-time left-arm orthodox spin, which he improved in the latter part of his career. He is regarded as a better batsman against fast bowling than spin bowling, and cites the Indian Oil Cup 2005 as a turning point in his career.^[21] Yuvraj is one of the athletic fielders in the Indian team, fielding primarily at point & covers with a good aim at the stumps. Yuvraj is a natural strokeplayer with an aggressive style of play, as seen by his strike rate of above 150 in T20 internationals & just below 90 in ODIs. Many regard him as one of the best clean strikers of the ball, with his trademark punch through the covers as a treat to watch. When in good touch, he can clear the ropes quite effortlessly. A Cricinfo report published in late 2005 showed that since 1999, he was the fourth most prolific fielder in affecting ODI run outs, and of those on the list of prolific fielders, he had the second highest rate of effecting a run out.^[22] He was previously often characterised as having attitude problems,^[23] but later often assumed leadership positions during Rahul Dravid's tenure as captain.

Centuries[link]

Test centuries[link]

Test Cricket Centuries of Yuvraj Singh
#	Runs	Match	Against	City/Country	Venue	Year
1	112	11	Pakistan	Lahore, Pakistan	Gaddafi Stadium	2004
2	122	13	Pakistan	Karachi, Pakistan	National Stadium, Karachi	2006
3	169	20	Pakistan	Bangalore, India	M.Chinnaswamy Stadium	2007

ODI centuries[link]

ODI Cricket Centuries of Yuvraj Singh
#	Runs	ball	Against	City/Country	Venue	Year	Result
1	102	71	Bangladesh	Dhaka, Bangladesh	Shere Bangla National Stadium	2003
2	139	122	Australia	Sydney, Australia	Sydney Cricket Ground	2004
3	110	114	West Indies	Colombo, Sri Lanka	R Premadasa Stadium	2005
4	120	124	Zimbabwe	Harare, Zimbabwe	Harare Sports Club	2005
5	103	122	South Africa	Hyderabad, India	Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium	2005
6	107*	93	Pakistan	Karachi, Pakistan	National Stadium, Karachi	2006
7	103	76	England	Margao, India	Nehru Stadium, Fatorda, Margao	2006
8	121	115	Australia	Hyderabad, India	Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium	2007
9	138*	78	England	Rajkot, India	Madhavrao Scindia Cricket Ground	2008
10	118	122	England	Indore, India	Maharani Usharaje Trust Cricket	2008
11	117	95	Sri Lanka	Colombo, Sri Lanka	R Premadasa Stadium	2009
12	131	102	West Indies	Kingston, Jamaica	Sabina Park	2009
13	113	123	West Indies	Chennai, India	MA Chidambaram Stadium	2011

County cricket[link]

After the 2003 World Cup, Yuvraj was signed by Yorkshire, becoming only the second Indian after Tendulkar to represent the county.^[24] However, he had a disappointing run, scoring less than 200 runs in either form of the game,^[25] but described it as an important learning experience.

Commercial interests[link]

Yuvraj was signed by Microsoft to be a brand ambassador for the Xbox 360 video game console when it was launched in India in 2006. He appeared in advertisements for the console alongside Bollywood actor Akshay Kumar. Codemasters' cricket video game Brian Lara International Cricket 2007 was released with his endorsement in India, titled "Yuvraj Singh International Cricket 2007"^[26] The Bollywood animated film, Jumbo features cricketer Yuvraj Singh's voice therefore starting his career in Bollywood.^[27] The upcoming animated full length feature film Captain India features Yuvraj Singh as the main protagonist.^[28]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Yuvraj Singh

• Yuvraj Singh official website
• Player profile: Yuvraj Singh from ESPNcricinfo
• Player profile: Yuvraj Singh from CricketArchive
• Yuvraj Singh on Twitter
• Tendulkar's inspiration behind Yuvraj's success in Word Cup 2011. 362 runs (Include 1 Century & 4 Half Centuries). He was one of the 2nd Indian player who took 10 Wickets and made 362 runs.
• I would return to field in few months : Yuvraj Singh Gurgaon, April 11

v t e India squad – 2003 Cricket World Cup Runners-Up 3 Harbhajan Singh 5 Dravid 7 Srinath 9 Agarkar 10 Tendulkar 11 Kaif 12 Yuvraj 18 Kumble 20 Patel 24 Ganguly (c) 28 Mongia 34 Zaheer 44 Sehwag 64 Nehra 66 Bangar Coach: Wright

v t e India squad – 2006 ICC Champions Trophy 1 Dravid 2 Tendulkar 3 Agarkar 4 Dhoni 5 Harbhajan Singh 6 Kaif 7 Mongia 8 Patel 9 Pathan 10 Powar 11 Raina 12 Sehwag 13 R. P. Singh 14 Sreesanth 15 Yuvraj Singh Coach: G Chappell

v t e India squad – 2007 Cricket World Cup 3 Harbhajan 7 Dhoni 10 Tendulkar 12 Yuvraj 13 Munaf 19 Dravid (c) 21 Ganguly 27 Uthappa 34 Zaheer 36 Sreesanth 37 Kumble 44 Sehwag 56 Pathan 68 Agarkar 99 Karthik Coach: Chappell

v t e India squad – 2007 ICC World Twenty20 (1st Title) 1 Harbhajan 2 Dhoni(c) 3 R Sharma 4 Yuvraj 5 Joginder 6 YK Pathan 7 Gambhir 8 Uthappa 9 R. P. Singh 10 Sreesanth 11 Chawla 44 Sehwag 12 IK Pathan 13 Agarkar 14 Karthik Coach: Rajput

v t e India squad – 2009 ICC World Twenty20 3 Harbhajan 7 Dhoni(c) 45 Rohit 12 Yuvraj 84 Jadeja 28 Yusuf 5 Gambhir 30 Ojha 9 R. P. Singh 29 Ishant 48 Raina 46 Sehwag 63 Irfan 34 Zaheer 1 Karthik 8 Praveen Coach: Kirsten

v t e India squad – 2010 ICC World Twenty20 3 Harbhajan 7 Dhoni(c) 45 Rohit 12 Yuvraj 26 Jadeja 28 Yusuf 5 Gambhir 24 Chawla 08 Vijay 64 Nehra 48 Raina 46 Yadav 23 Vinay 34 Zaheer 1 Karthik 8 Praveen Coach: Kirsten Praveen Kumar was injured and replaced by Umesh Yadav halfway through the tournament.

v t e India squad – 2011 Cricket World Cup (2nd Title) 3 Harbhajan 5 Gambhir 7 Dhoni (c & wk) 10 Tendulkar 11 Chawla 12 Yuvraj 13 Munaf 18 Kohli 28 Yusuf 34 Zaheer 36 Sreesanth 44 Sehwag 48 Raina 64 Nehra 66 Ashwin Coach: Kirsten Praveen Kumar was injured and replaced by Sreesanth.