New Delhi, June 6: As cricketer Yuvraj Singh was padding up to appear for Asia XI against an African side this afternoon, a Gurgaon court was preparing to bowl him out.

Accused of beating up a namesake — Yuvraj Siddharth — at his birthday party last December, the southpaw was today ordered to surrender before the court by August 18 or face arrest.

Yuvraj has been evading appearance in court citing “national commitments” — a euphemism for playing for Team India — such as the tour by the West Indies, which was followed by the all-important World Cup.

Pleas by Siddharth’s mother Neelam to prevent Yuvraj from playing in the Caribbean had been turned down by the Gurgaon court.

“Now he is going to be timed out,” Akash Tyagi, Neelam’s lawyer, told The Telegraph, referring to the dismissal of an incoming batsman for holding the game up.

Siddharth had alleged that the trouble started after a girl he had come with was “harassed” by Yuvraj’s friend.

During the argument that followed, Yuvraj and some of his friends beat Siddharth up.