Yuvraj Singh ruled out of IPL

Yuvraj Singh, the India batsman, could be ruled out of cricket for as many as six months due to the ongoing treatment of his non-malignant lung tumour. This means he will at least miss the Asia Cup and the IPL, where he captained the Pune Warriors last year.

The last time Yuvraj played competitive cricket was the Tests against West Indies last November, and he was originally hoping to return as early as next month's ODI tri-series in Australia.

According to PTI, quoting an unnamed source from the IPL, Yuvraj is currently overseas. He has travelled to the United States in order to undergo "advanced treatment" for the tumour following which there will be a period of recuperation expected to take several months as well. This means he would not be available to play in the IPL, which starts on April 4. The unnamed IPL source said it could take up to "six months" for Yuvraj to return to cricket.

It has been a nightmare run for Yuvraj since his Man-of-the-Series performance in India's World Cup victory last year. An injury kept him out of the tour of the West Indies and his contribution to India's tour of England was cut short by a finger injury sustained during the Nottingham Test. He returned for the home Tests against West Indies, and was left out of the side for the third Test, in November.