[VIDEO] Harbhajan Singh retires from all forms of cricket - How will he be remembered?

[MenInG]

https://twitter.com/x/status/1474302128311062533

==

Veteran spinner Harbhajan Singh, the first Indian bowler to claim a Test hat-trick, has announced his retirement from all forms of cricket. He bows out as the country's fourth-highest wicket-taker (417) behind Anil Kumble, Kapil Dev and R Ashwin.

"All good things come to an end and today as I bid adieu to the game that has given me everything in life, I would like to thank everyone who made this 23-year-long journey beautiful and memorable," Harbhajan tweeted.

Harbhajan, 40, ends his career having played 103 Tests, 236 ODIs and 28 T20Is for India. He made his debut for the side in 1998 in an ODI against Australia, and was the part of India's victorious WT20 squad in 2007 as well as the side which lifted the 2011 World Cup in India. Harbhajan picked up seven wickets in the inaugural edition of the T20 World Cup as he led the spin-bowling attack, and was India's prime spin-bowling option in the 2011 ODI WC as well, where India defeated Sri Lanka in the final to lift the trophy.

"My journey from the streets of Jalandhar to become the Turnabator for Team India has been a beautiful one. There is no bigger motivation for me in life than stepping out on the field while wearing the India jersey. However, there comes a time in life where we have to take a tough decision and you have to move forward in life. I was waiting for the last few years to make this announcement public - I am retiring from all forms of cricket," Harbhajan said on his official YouTube channel.

The veteran off-spinner last represented India in 2016 in a T20I, but continued to play in the Indian Premier League till earlier this year, when he was the part of the Kolkata Knight Riders squad. In a stellar IPL career, Harbhajan represented three sides - Mumbai Indians (2008-2017), Chennai Super Kings (2018-2019) and Kolkata Knight Riders (2021), lifting the title on four occasions - thrice with MI and once with CSK.

"In many ways, I had already retired as a cricketer, but hadn't been able to make a formal announcement. I haven't been an active cricketer for a while. But I had a commitment to Kolkata Knight Riders, and wanted to spend the (2021) IPL season with them. But during the season itself, I had made up my mind to retire," Harbhajan added.

In the 2000s, Harbhajan went on to become the country's top spinner along with the great Kumble. Harbhajan's coming-of-age series was the 2001 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, where he grabbed a hat-trick in the famous Eden Gardens Test in Kolkata. He dismissed Ricky Ponting, Adam Gilchrist and Shane Warne off successive deliveries as India completed arguably their most famous Test wins of all time.

https://www.hindustantimes.com/cric...rom-all-forms-of-cricket-101640336212608.html

 

[MenInG]

His records:

417 Test wickets @ 32.4
269 ODI wickets @ 33.3
25 T20I wickets @ 25.3

 

[mastimasti]

An absolute legend of Indian cricket, a character and a brilliant international cricketer, one of the very best we've ever had.

 

[Unbiased-Fan]

I thought he has retired long time ago.
Anyways good luck to him.

 

[Zaz]

Thought he had retired ages back Since hes not played for india for last 5 years or so

Anyway All the best n happy retirement!

 

[Ab Fan]

What is up these days with official announcement of retirement after leaving cricket for so long?

Nevertheless, very good player.

Series win vs Australia in 2001 is his best performance in my mind. 400 test wickets is not a joke and an all format successful player too.

 

[MenInG]

Thought he had retired ages back Since hes not played for india for last 5 years or so

Anyway All the best n happy retirement!

All forms of cricket now.

 

[Varun]

Meaningless retirement announcement.

Everybody retires the last day they play for their countries.

These T20 domestic tournament retirements mean nothing and should be disregarded.

 

[hoshiarpurexpress]

Part of a Golden Generation of Indian Cricketers who won LOI trophies and ICC No. Rankings.
Achieved Great Heights. Still Remember Young Bhajji dismissing Ponting and sledging him.
Fighter to the core..Rab Rakha Best of Luck for future endeavours

 

[Amjid Javed]

1 season wonder with the ball. He had that once in lifetime bowling series vs Aussies when they came from 1-0 down to win 2-1 test series. He was unplayable in that series and also got inspiration from his mothers sad death.

Otherwise he was just an average spinner. still remember Afridi treating him like a net bowler in games against each other.

 

[BunnyRabbit]

A career of two contrasting halves. till 2006 he was brilliant. After that, he was just a reliable containing spinner.

 

[Amjid Javed]

A career of two contrasting halves. till 2006 he was brilliant. After that, he was just a reliable containing spinner.

Brilliant career based on what? only sides he bowled well against were zimbabwe and WI. Plus one good test series vs Aus.

All decent players of spin pak, SL, bangladesh smacked this guy round the park.

in current era he wouldnt even make it into indias test squad hes no where near the level of indias current spinners.

nor was he even half as good as kumble when he was playing. Kumble is what you call a top class indian spinner back years ago.

 

[Artaxerxes]

Bishen Singh Bedi was convinced Harbhahan was a chucker but because he is Indian ICC had no guts to declare his action illegal.

 

[Unbiased-Fan]

Brilliant career based on what? only sides he bowled well against were zimbabwe and WI. Plus one good test series vs Aus.

All decent players of spin pak, SL, bangladesh smacked this guy round the park.

in current era he wouldnt even make it into indias test squad hes no where near the level of indias current spinners.

nor was he even half as good as kumble when he was playing. Kumble is what you call a top class indian spinner back years ago.

Exactly.
I started watching cricket since 2002. Only notable performances of Harbhajan i witness were his 10fer in Srilanka and a brilliant spell against England in 2012 T20I world cup. I rarely saw Harbhajan performing well for team India in any format.

 

[MenInG]

New Delhi: Harbhajan Singh, recently announced his retirement from all forms of international cricket. The veteran off spinner is known to be vocal about his views related to subjects other than cricket.

Political experts have started speculations that Harbhajan Singh might join the Congress before the elections. However, Harbhajan Singh has not given any clarification regarding related to it.

Punjab polls are scheduled for next year. There is much chaos in Congress as Ex CM Captain Amarinder Singh said the mission of his party, the Punjab Lok Congress, was to form government in the state and not just defeat the ruling Congress.

https://www.cricketcountry.com/news...spinners-meet-with-navjot-singh-sidhu-1009327

 

[sweep_shot]

He was a good player. Not an ATG.

 

[Unbiased-Fan]

Exactly.
I started watching cricket since 2002. Only notable performances of Harbhajan i witness were his 10fer in Srilanka and a brilliant spell against England in 2012 T20I world cup. I rarely saw Harbhajan performing well for team India in any format.

Also smacking Amir out of the park to seal a match in Asia cup was my favourite Bhajji moment. His celebration after this six and his dual with Akhtar was epic.

 

[MesonK]

Good player but chucked notoriously.

 

[Devadwal]

1 season wonder with the ball. He had that once in lifetime bowling series vs Aussies when they came from 1-0 down to win 2-1 test series. He was unplayable in that series and also got inspiration from his mothers sad death.

Otherwise he was just an average spinner. still remember Afridi treating him like a net bowler in games against each other.

Bhajji taken Afridi wicket in most important match of both players Life .now its upto you to find that match.

 

[topspin]

Enjoyed his chucking and dancing his way up to bowl.

 

[street cricketer]

For giving a tight slap on live tv to a teammate

 

[WhenSultansBowled]

If he were not an Indian he wouldn't have played so many games. But then again we have likes of Ojha, Ashwin or even Bumrah.


In any case, enjoy your retirement Bhajji!

 

[Unbiased-Fan]

If he were not an Indian he wouldn't have played so many games. But then again we have likes of Ojha, Ashwin or even Bumrah.


In any case, enjoy your retirement Bhajji!

Just like Afridi who despite being a mediocre cricketer played nearly 400 ODIs for a country.

 

[MenInG]

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-partner="tweetdeck"><p lang="en" dir="ltr">A legend and one of the finest to have ever played the game! &#55357;&#56908;<a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/TeamIndia?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#TeamIndia</a> congratulate <a href="https://twitter.com/harbhajan_singh?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@harbhajan_singh</a> on a glorious career &#55357;&#56399;&#55357;&#56399;<a href="https://twitter.com/imVkohli?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@imVkohli</a> | <a href="https://twitter.com/cheteshwar1?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@cheteshwar1</a> <a href="https://t.co/iefNrA4r2M">pic.twitter.com/iefNrA4r2M</a></p>— BCCI (@BCCI) <a href="https://twitter.com/BCCI/status/1474404625050583040?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 24, 2021</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>

 

[Saj]

Bishen Singh Bedi was convinced Harbhahan was a chucker but because he is Indian ICC had no guts to declare his action illegal.

I think there were a lot of doubts over his action. especially from those who were called for having an illegal action, yet Harbjajan was never called.

There were times when his action looked like suspect.

However a very good career overall.

 

[moghul]

I thought he was retired long time ago.

Has Bedi announced his retirement ?

 

[MenInG]

First Indian to take Test hat-trick

Harbhajan enjoyed memorable duels with several Australian greats during his international career. In 2001, Harbhajan entered his name in the history books by becoming the first Indian bowler to take a Test match hat-trick. Leading India's bowling attack in the second Test against Australia at the Eden Gardens, Harbhajan dismissed Ricky Ponting, Adam Gilchrist and Shane Warne to take a sensational hat-trick. VVS Laxman's 281-run knock had also arrived in the same Test match.


Historic two-wicket maiden overs in T20Is

Making a sensational comeback for India, Harbahan managed to rewrite history by bowling two-wicket maiden overs in T20I cricket. Harbhajan had returned figures of 4-12 as India hammered England in their final group game of the ICC World T20 2012. Harbhajan also held the record of bowling most maiden overs for India in T20Is (5). However, his record was shattered by Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah who has now bowled 8 maidens in the shortest format.


First Indian off-spinner to take 400 Test wickets

Before Ravichandran Ashwin joined the special club, it was Harbhajan who became the first Indian off-spinner to take 400 Test wickets. Harbhajan achieved the historic feat in 2011 against the West Indies. The former Indian spinner was recently surpassed by Ashwin in the list of highest-taker for India in Tests. Harbhajan is India's 4th highest wicket-taker with 417 dismissals under his belt. The iconic spinner played 103 Test matches for India.


2nd highest Indian wicket-taker in IPL

Harbhajan also enjoyed a glorious career in domestic cricket's biggest extravaganza - the IPL. Harbhajan has lifted the famous trophy on four occasions in his legendary IPL career. Harbhajan's KKR made it to the final of the IPL last season. The veteran spinner is also the fifth-highest wicket-taker in the history of IPL. The former KKR spinner has taken 150 wickets from 163 IPL matches. Harbhajan was a part of IPL-winning sides at Mumbai Indians (MI) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Harbhajan is also the second-highest Indian wicket-taker in the cash-rich league.

https://www.timesnownews.com/sports...records-held-by-veteran-indian-spinner/843365

 

[MenInG]

I thought he was retired long time ago.

Has Bedi announced his retirement ?

"In many ways, I had already retired as a cricketer, but hadn't been able to make a formal announcement. I haven't been an active cricketer for a while. But I had a commitment to Kolkata Knight Riders, and wanted to spend the (2021) IPL season with them. But during the season itself, I had made up my mind to retire," Harbhajan added.

 

[MesonK]

Just like Afridi who despite being a mediocre cricketer played nearly 400 ODIs for a country.

Singh and Afridi have similar bowling averages ... Afridi just scored 8000+ ODI runs as bonus. who is who here?

 

[hitthestump]

His records:

417 Test wickets @ 32.4
269 ODI wickets @ 33.3
25 T20I wickets @ 25.3

Average returns for an average cricketer really. Had longevity among his generation of Indian cricketers which was still yet to become a good bowling side.

For India he is a legend, but only because it's taken them so long to figure out how to bowl.

 

[Ab Fan]

Harbhajan has been a very good player without any shadow of doubts. He has won India test matches away from home in alien conditions like New Zealand or South Africa by taking 5-fers and 6-fers there.

In limited overs, I recall his spell in WT20 2007 semi final vs Australia which was so pivotal for India winning that big knockout game against the favourites of that time.

 

[shaz619]

A bloke with a great record which is overshadowed by his bowling action unfortunately

 

[Technics 1210]

Nothing worthy of note other than Monkey-gate.

 

[Kaddy]

Lol, I thought he had retired long back.

 

[Walawalkar]

I thought he was retired long time ago.

Has Bedi announced his retirement ?

Will do after Shahid Afridi

 

[happydavy]

He is someone who didn't develop his bowling much after the initial few years. No doubt he was overrated and because of Ganguly and later Dhoni played much longer than he ideally should have. Having said that a good career, which i thought was over long ago never mind this retirement announcement, with quite a few accomplishments to remember.

 

[Savak]

Ruined his legacy by hanging on a good decade past after when the BCCI selectors made it clear they were moving forward

 

[BreadPakoda]

Good servant of Indian cricket and our best spinner for the years between Kumble’s retirement and Ashwin’s arrival. Deserves credit for playing an important role in the 2007 and 2011 World Cup wins.

 

[YousafTheBeast]

Just like Afridi who despite being a mediocre cricketer played nearly 400 ODIs for a country.

Afridi was in the team to score quick fire runs and take some wickets. Some people just don’t understand the role of a number 7 power-hitter*

 

[Vocare Ad Regnum]

Singh and Afridi have similar bowling averages ... Afridi just scored 8000+ ODI runs as bonus. who is who here?

Bhajji took 400+ wickets in the premier formats, what did Afridi do?

 

[Vocare Ad Regnum]

Great career, took 400+ wickets in test cricket which is a rare achievement, has 4 performances in wisden top 100 bowling performances ever.

Also one of the greatest bowling performance in an individual series.

 

[Vocare Ad Regnum]

1 season wonder with the ball. He had that once in lifetime bowling series vs Aussies when they came from 1-0 down to win 2-1 test series. He was unplayable in that series and also got inspiration from his mothers sad death.

Otherwise he was just an average spinner. still remember Afridi treating him like a net bowler in games against each other.

One season wonder who took 400+ test wickets? Maybe you call Lyon a one season wonder too.

Afridi achieved nothing in the premier format of the game while Bhajji took 400 scalps, no comparison.

Also Afridi averages 14 against Bhajji

 

[YousafTheBeast]

Bhajji took 400+ wickets in the premier formats, what did Afridi do?

Afridi averaged close to Harbhajan with the ball + he averaged 35+ with bat*

But, you have to admit it’s kinda embarrassing for a specialist spinner to be averaging 30+ with the ball especially when he’s played most of his games on spin friendly pitches.

 

[BreadPakoda]

Afridi averaged close to Harbhajan with the ball + he averaged 35+ with bat*

But, you have to admit it’s kinda embarrassing for a specialist spinner to be averaging 30+ with the ball especially when he’s played most of his games on spin friendly pitches.

Afridi had more talent, but Bhajji achieved far more (400+ test wickets, main spinner during ODI WC, T20I WC wins, no 1 test ranking)

 

[volcyz]

Was at his peak in the 2001 series vs aus

 

[Mesozoic]

Afridi averaged close to Harbhajan with the ball + he averaged 35+ with bat*

But, you have to admit it’s kinda embarrassing for a specialist spinner to be averaging 30+ with the ball especially when he’s played most of his games on spin friendly pitches.

Yes because picking 48 and 417 Test wickets is the same thing as long as the averages are "close". What a gem of a logic!!

And no Bhajji didn't play most of his games on spin friendly wickets. Most of his career, our wickets were absolute flatbeds with 600 scored every other game.

 

[big_gamer007]

Not sure why all the negativity here but that seems a general trend amongst desis.
Not everyone will have a career like Wasim or Sachin, Bhajji did very good in international cricket. Wish him the best for future.

 

[Cover Drive Six]

Bajji is better spinner than mone track bully Ashwin

 

[Junaids]

Well, here in Australia he is remembered rather like the football manager Big Ron is remembered in England, or the actor who played Kramer in Seinfeld is remembered in America…

 

[Swashbuckler]

Without doosra he wasn't effective, extremely mediocre in fact. His bowling was torture in the second half of his career.

Too many chuckers from SC made merry with doosras in the pre-2014 period, ruined the sport.

With present set of rules Bhajji wouldn't be close to selection in the Indian squad. It is what it is, cricket is way cleaner now.

Entertaining bloke though, had his moments even with the bat.

 

[Swashbuckler]

Rate Swann, Ashwin, Lyon above Bhajji. Not only are these 3 statistically/stylistically better they don't resort to the javelin throw called doosra.

If I must include all types of spinners doubt Bhajji will make top 10 spinners since 2000.

Vettori, Herath, Jadeja, Shakib, Warne, Kumble, MacGill, Yasir all have better credentials in test cricket (excluded javelin throwers for obvious reasons). So there's 11, including 3 offies. Kaneria was another potential pick but again he was a fixer.

 

[Zaz]

Had a decent career overall Never did much against pakistan tho I remember him more for the kanpur massacre and failing to get a wicket in pakistan back in 2006 who toyed with him in that series

 

[Swashbuckler]

Was painful to watch Bhajji chuck merrily in recent editions of IPL, without being called by the umpires. In fact that was his modus operandi whenever under pressure. Everyone could see it but even commentators would ignore, no accountability, no sense of fair play.

In one of the games against Mumbai Indians his chucking made the worst chucks by Murali and Ajmal look tame.

 

[Cricfan4eva]

The fact that his best series was his debut series vs Aus in 2001 and it never rose to that level again just sums up his career

I fail to see why he is given such a legendary status. Only spinner slower than Bhajji (97 innings) to 400 test wickets is Lyon (101 innings) and it's understandable for him because he plays most of his tests in Australia.

Harbhajan thrived in an era when we didn't have great spinners in domestic cricket. And competitions were the likes of mediocre Murali Kartik and Ramesh Powar.

 

[MenInG]

Chandigarh: Ex-India cricketer Harbhajan Singh - who announced his retirement yesterday amid buzz he could join electoral politics - claimed Saturday that he is fielding offers from several parties.

However, the off-spinner, who helped India win the 2011 World Cup, refused to be drawn on speculation and only said that his future (post-cricket) plans were "something I have not decided".

"Future plan is something I have not decided, I will stay connected with cricket... it is because of cricket people know me. As far as my political career... when it happens, I will let everyone know."

"To be honest, I have not thought about it. I have offers from different parties to join... but I will have to sit and think very wisely. It won't be a small decision because it is a demanding job. I do not want to do it half-heartedly. The day I think I am prepared to do it, I will go for it," Harbhajan said.

Speculation over Harbhajan Singh's next innings resurfaced earlier this month after Punjab Congress chief and fellow ex-cricketer Navjot Sidhu posted a photo of the two with a cryptic note.

"Picture loaded with possibilities... with bhajji, the shining star," Sidhu wrote.

Asked about the photo with Sidhu, Harbhajan replied: "It was a casual meeting. Polls are near so I understood why people speculate... but there is nothing. If I enter politics, I will let everyone know."

This was after yet more speculation that both Harbhajan and another ex-India cricket star - all-rounder Yuvraj Singh - might join the BJP ahead of the 2022 Assembly election in Punjab.

Harbhajan, however, moved to quash such talk; a firm tweet called it "fake news".

Buzz about his political career has been around since the 2019 Lok Sabha election.

Then too he ruled out following Navjot Sidhu in swapping cricketing whites for political rallies. He said: "There are too many seasoned people in the politics. So, I have no plan."

Punjab votes in an Assembly election in February-March, and it would be a big boost - for the image of either the Congress or the BJP - to land Harbhajan and/or Yuvraj before polling begins.

The BJP is eager to take advantage of recent turmoil within the Congress - which many have traced to the Sidhu-Amarinder Singh feud - and win back Punjab. It already has one recent ex-India cricketer in its ranks - Delhi MP Gautam Gambhir.

The Congress, meanwhile, is determined to retain control of Punjab - one of very few states it rules outright - and being able to field Harbhajan, who played thrice with Sidhu, would be a big thing.

https://www.ndtv.com/india-news/pun...n-politics-2670954#pfrom=home-ndtv_topstories

 

[MenInG]

Veteran off-spinner Harbhajan Singh announced his retirement from all forms of cricket on Friday, putting an end to a 23-year-long career. Harbhajan made his India debut in 1998 and represented India for 18 years, appearing in 103 Tests, 236 ODIs and 28 T20Is. The off-spinner was also a part of India's winning squads in the 2007 T20 World Cup and 2011 ODI World Cup.

Harbhajan faced inconsistency in his performances post the 2011 World Cup victory, when he was first dropped from the ODI and Test squads in the second half of the year. He was recalled in the side for the home series against Australia and England in 2012 but was dropped again after indifferent performances. The off-spinner continued to make select appearances and eventually played his final match for India in 2016.

In an interview after his retirement, Harbhajan has now insisted that if he had received support in 2012, he would've ended up with “500-550” wickets in Test cricket.

“It always feels nice to have that support. I'll say that if I got the support at the right time, I would've retired much earlier after 500-550 wickets because I was 31 when I reached the 400-wicket mark. If I played 3-4 years more, I would've reached 500 wickets but that didn't happen,” Harbhajan told Dainik Jagran.

The former off-spinner further stated that if a player needs support even after taking over 400 wickets, there needs to be introspection in their treatment.

“There were many reasons and if I dwell upon them, we would probably lose a lot of things. I never felt the need for support after 2001-02; I needed support after I took 400 wickets and if a player needs it after reaching that mark, I don't know how we take care of our players. There comes a time when you need to respect your players because they deserve it. But that decision lies with a certain set of people,” said Harbhajan.

"However, I would like to say after the support I received from Sourav Ganguly in 2001-02, I never needed it again. But I needed the backing in 2012 and if I had received it, my career would've been even better and I had retired much earlier after 550 wickets."

https://www.hindustantimes.com/cric...-people-after-retirement-101640411970427.html

 

[Zaz]

Veteran off-spinner Harbhajan Singh announced his retirement from all forms of cricket on Friday, putting an end to a 23-year-long career. Harbhajan made his India debut in 1998 and represented India for 18 years, appearing in 103 Tests, 236 ODIs and 28 T20Is. The off-spinner was also a part of India's winning squads in the 2007 T20 World Cup and 2011 ODI World Cup.

Harbhajan faced inconsistency in his performances post the 2011 World Cup victory, when he was first dropped from the ODI and Test squads in the second half of the year. He was recalled in the side for the home series against Australia and England in 2012 but was dropped again after indifferent performances. The off-spinner continued to make select appearances and eventually played his final match for India in 2016.

In an interview after his retirement, Harbhajan has now insisted that if he had received support in 2012, he would've ended up with “500-550” wickets in Test cricket.

“It always feels nice to have that support. I'll say that if I got the support at the right time, I would've retired much earlier after 500-550 wickets because I was 31 when I reached the 400-wicket mark. If I played 3-4 years more, I would've reached 500 wickets but that didn't happen,” Harbhajan told Dainik Jagran.

The former off-spinner further stated that if a player needs support even after taking over 400 wickets, there needs to be introspection in their treatment.

“There were many reasons and if I dwell upon them, we would probably lose a lot of things. I never felt the need for support after 2001-02; I needed support after I took 400 wickets and if a player needs it after reaching that mark, I don't know how we take care of our players. There comes a time when you need to respect your players because they deserve it. But that decision lies with a certain set of people,” said Harbhajan.

"However, I would like to say after the support I received from Sourav Ganguly in 2001-02, I never needed it again. But I needed the backing in 2012 and if I had received it, my career would've been even better and I had retired much earlier after 550 wickets."

https://www.hindustantimes.com/cric...-people-after-retirement-101640411970427.html

Harbhajan was washed up in his last few years To say hed have taken 500-550 wickets is laughable

He was lucky he played 100 tests and took 400 wickets because for the last last few years in intl cricket he was playing solely on reputation and not performance

 

[YousafTheBeast]

Afridi had more talent, but Bhajji achieved far more (400+ test wickets, main spinner during ODI WC, T20I WC wins, no 1 test ranking)

He was the main spinner because India had no other options, there’s a reason why we would often see Sehwag bowl, lol.

Also, the same WC where Afridi was the leading wicket taker, and correct me if I’m wrong but also player of the tournament in 07?

Yes because picking 48 and 417 Test wickets is the same thing as long as the averages are "close". What a gem of a logic!!

And no Bhajji didn't play most of his games on spin friendly wickets. Most of his career, our wickets were absolute flatbeds with 600 scored every other game.

Let’s also not forget that one didn’t take test cricket seriously. If he really wanted to, he could’ve achieved a lot more than Harbhajan.

Yes, yes he did. We’re talking about pitches where Sehwag was bowling like peak Murali against South Africa in Kanpur, 2008.

Oh yes, flatbeds, where Australia bowled India out for 100 odd in Wankhede 2004, also, where Michael Clark took a 6-for was it? What a flatbed smh.

Harbhajan played majority of his games on spin friendly conditions, and he still averaged 32. A mediocre specialist spinner getting overshadowed by a bowling all rounder.

 

[Mesozoic]

Let’s also not forget that one didn’t take test cricket seriously. If he really wanted to, he could’ve achieved a lot more than Harbhajan.

Yeah I too didn't take my studies seriously. If
I really wanted to, I could've achieved a lot more than Einstein and Hawking combined.

Yes, yes he did. We’re talking about pitches where Sehwag was bowling like peak Murali against South Africa in Kanpur, 2008.

Oh yes, flatbeds, where Australia bowled India out for 100 odd in Wankhede 2004, also, where Michael Clark took a 6-for was it? What a flatbed smh.

Harbhajan played majority of his games on spin friendly conditions, and he still averaged 32. A mediocre specialist spinner getting overshadowed by a bowling all rounder.

Just the fact that you're pointing out one or two instances across a period of more than a decade tells us every thing we need to know. For every Michael clarke 5fer, I can point out a dozen instances of teams scoring 500s and 600s on indian wickets in that period. Just admit that you goofed up big time by comparing a 47 wicket bowler to a 418 one and move on. No need to double down and face further embarrassment.

 

[PakEngFan]

A racist javelin thrower.

 

[Ab Fan]

The greatest spinner to have come from subcontinent debuted in the last 50 years after Kumble and Ashwin.

 

[YousafTheBeast]

Yeah I too didn't take my studies seriously. If
I really wanted to, I could've achieved a lot more than Einstein and Hawking combined.




Just the fact that you're pointing out one or two instances across a period of more than a decade tells us every thing we need to know. For every Michael clarke 5fer, I can point out a dozen instances of teams scoring 500s and 600s on indian wickets in that period. Just admit that you goofed up big time by comparing a 47 wicket bowler to a 418 one and move on. No need to double down and face further embarrassment.

And yet most of the wickets were probably taken by spinners in those 600 run games*

Harbhajan Singh has the second worst bowling average in tests (min 300 wickets) you really shouldn’t be glorifying his test record.

Had Ashwin and Jadeja debuted 10 years earlier, Harbhajan would’ve probably played less tests than Afridi.

 

[BreadPakoda]

And yet most of the wickets were probably taken by spinners in those 600 run games&#55358;&#56614;&#55356;&#57339;*

Harbhajan Singh has the second worst bowling average in tests (min 300 wickets) you really shouldn’t be glorifying his test record.

Had Ashwin and Jadeja debuted 10 years earlier, Harbhajan would’ve probably played less tests than Afridi.

And if PCB had some brain cells, Afridi would've been dropped from the side long ago. Any way, this isn't Afridi 54th retirement thread, so why make it all about him? Probably the 2011 WC semi final wicket off a full toss still hurts.

 

[MenInG]

Thread is about Harbhajan

 

[YousafTheBeast]

Hilarious, watching some of these Indians have a meltdown over a mediocre specialist spinner who averaged in the 30’s even after playing most of his games in conditions suited to him.

Those 4 consecutive sixes will always be remembered.

 

[Ab Fan]

Harbhajan played majority of his games on spin friendly conditions, and he still averaged 32. A mediocre specialist spinner getting overshadowed by a bowling all rounder.

Not interested in going into the Harbhajan argument but it is important to be aware of right facts. Harbhajan was actually one of those rare Indian spinners who bowled mostly on flatter home wickets(2000s era had mostly flat wickets at home barring a couple of games which he himself mentioned some time back and he achieved success there). The dust bowls were there in 90s and it has been post 10s too but not in 2000s.

 

[YousafTheBeast]

Not interested in going into the Harbhajan argument but it is important to be aware of right facts. Harbhajan was actually one of those rare Indian spinners who bowled mostly on flatter home wickets(2000s era had mostly flat wickets at home barring a couple of games which he himself mentioned some time back and he achieved success there). The dust bowls were there in 90s and it has been post 10s too but not in 2000s.

Barring a couple of games? So there were dust bowls but there weren’t? I’m lost.

Was the Kolkata pitch in 2001 not a dust bowl? A spinner getting 7 wickets in the first 2 days of a test match, can that be done on a flat pitch like the ones we see in UAE? (Where spinners come into play on Day 4-5)

 

[DRsohail]

A very good test bowler with doubtful action.

 

[Mesozoic]

And yet most of the wickets were probably taken by spinners in those 600 run games*

)

So let me get this straight. If two spinners have figures of 3/200 and 3/150 in an innings, then that surface should be considered spin friendly because most (6/10) of the wickets are picked up by spinners. Oh dear oh...

Harbhajan Singh has the second worst bowling average in tests (min 300 wickets) you really shouldn’t be glorifying his test record.

Had Ashwin and Jadeja debuted 10 years earlier, Harbhajan would’ve probably played less tests than Afridi.

Now you're just strawman-ing this lol. Where did I glorify him? I was just pointing at your bizarre comparison of him with a guy who doesn't even have 50 test scalps, just because their averages are "close". Please read the discussion again.

 

[CrIc_Mystique]

Amazed at the negativity, criticism and the pathetic trolling.
Ok, he may not be an ATG but he was a damm good bowler. You dont get 400+ wickets in tests by accident. In addition to his home wins, he won us Hamilton 2009 NZ and durban 2010 (from memory) along with good performances in several other overseas tests.
Was good to watch, a twinkle in his, always a spring in his step, a real fighter who improved his batting to the tune of 2 100's in tests one of which india was in deep trouble, and who can forget that caning he gave akthar and amrir in 2010 Asia cup in SL, that was epic.
good luck in retirement.

 

[shamaan]

Warrior

 

[YousafTheBeast]

)

So let me get this straight. If two spinners have figures of 3/200 and 3/150 in an innings, then that surface should be considered spin friendly because most (6/10) of the wickets are picked up by spinners. Oh dear oh...



Now you're just strawman-ing this lol. Where did I glorify him? I was just pointing at your bizarre comparison of him with a guy who doesn't even have 50 test scalps, just because their averages are "close". Please read the discussion again.

Does picking up 7 wickets in the first 2 days of a test match sound like a pitch that isn’t spinner friendly?


So what, people compare Bradman to other test greats even though he’s only played 52 tests.

 

[Colorblind Genius]

Personally, I didn't see him some sort of an earth shattering impactful bowler. He did play a few good innings with the bat though. I don't think his action was the cleanest as well. And then we all know the extreme lack of etiquettes. Never displayed any ability to come up as a wise gentleman.

I don't remember the exact match but someone will pull it out here.

I think it was a Test match.
Harbhajjan appealed knowing very well that it was not out (either there was a huge edge or the ball had bounced before Dhoni took the catch... something along those lines). Umpire raised the finger and the first thing Harbajjan did was to tell Dhoni, it wasn't out and did you see how I tricked the umpire? And they all laughed in celebration.

I lost all respect (the very little I had) for Harbajjan from that point on.

To me, it was just a display of classless mindset of a low level daft when we compare it with the incident of, when the Srikhanth was clearly out but felt that he was wrong done after being given out, Imran Khan called him back to bat again. This is was you call class.

Harbajjan and his fans can brag all he wants with whatever stats he has to be proud of but for me, he remains a classless sportsman.

 

[BreadPakoda]

Amazed at the negativity, criticism and the pathetic trolling.
Ok, he may not be an ATG but he was a damm good bowler. You dont get 400+ wickets in tests by accident. In addition to his home wins, he won us Hamilton 2009 NZ and durban 2010 (from memory) along with good performances in several other overseas tests.
Was good to watch, a twinkle in his, always a spring in his step, a real fighter who improved his batting to the tune of 2 100's in tests one of which india was in deep trouble, and who can forget that caning he gave akthar and amrir in 2010 Asia cup in SL, that was epic.
good luck in retirement.

He was also pretty clutch just like some other players from his generation (Yuvi, Gambhir, Raina)

Remember him supporting Raina in a critical 30-run partnership in WC'11 SF. India was 200/6in 41ish overs and almost down and out. Also, who can forget his test century against NZ when India was 15/5.

 

[Zaz]

Personally, I didn't see him some sort of an earth shattering impactful bowler. He did play a few good innings with the bat though. I don't think his action was the cleanest as well. And then we all know the extreme lack of etiquettes. Never displayed any ability to come up as a wise gentleman.

I don't remember the exact match but someone will pull it out here.

I think it was a Test match.
Harbhajjan appealed knowing very well that it was not out (either there was a huge edge or the ball had bounced before Dhoni took the catch... something along those lines). Umpire raised the finger and the first thing Harbajjan did was to tell Dhoni, it wasn't out and did you see how I tricked the umpire? And they all laughed in celebration.

I lost all respect (the very little I had) for Harbajjan from that point on.

To me, it was just a display of classless mindset of a low level daft when we compare it with the incident of, when the Srikhanth was clearly out but felt that he was wrong done after being given out, Imran Khan called him back to bat again. This is was you call class.

Harbajjan and his fans can brag all he wants with whatever stats he has to be proud of but for me, he remains a classless sportsman.

Yh always seemed to rub people the wrong way with some poor unruly behaviour We have seen this recently with his spat with amir online

Not the most respected or classy individual

 

[CrIc_Mystique]

Personally, I didn't see him some sort of an earth shattering impactful bowler. He did play a few good innings with the bat though. I don't think his action was the cleanest as well. And then we all know the extreme lack of etiquettes. Never displayed any ability to come up as a wise gentleman.

I don't remember the exact match but someone will pull it out here.

I think it was a Test match.
Harbhajjan appealed knowing very well that it was not out (either there was a huge edge or the ball had bounced before Dhoni took the catch... something along those lines). Umpire raised the finger and the first thing Harbajjan did was to tell Dhoni, it wasn't out and did you see how I tricked the umpire? And they all laughed in celebration.

I lost all respect (the very little I had) for Harbajjan from that point on.

To me, it was just a display of classless mindset of a low level daft when we compare it with the incident of, when the Srikhanth was clearly out but felt that he was wrong done after being given out, Imran Khan called him back to bat again. This is was you call class.

Harbajjan and his fans can brag all he wants with whatever stats he has to be proud of but for me, he remains a classless sportsman.

He was a fighter. and not for him the classless sledging.
and whilst on calling people back, indian captain vishwanath also called back bob taylor on no less a grand occasion as the 1980 golden jubilee test, bombay - india vs eng. the whole test turned on that moment.
theres a few vdo's out there of plenty of guys not walking when they palpably edged it or fielders claiming catches when it was grassed. go easy on the class -m8 there's several who possess it in spades.

 

[MesonK]

Bhajji took 400+ wickets in the premier formats, what did Afridi do?

Afridi took ~400 ODI wickets and made 8000+ ODI runs. What did Harbajjan do?

 

[Saksham]

I wish a very happy retirement to Bhajji Paa. I have been a huge fan of him since childhood. He has always been my favourite bowler and I used to copy his bowling action and I am sure most of the children of my generation might have done the same. 103 Test Matches, 417 Wickets, 25 - 5 fers, 5 - 10 fers, 2 Test Hundreds, 2225 Runs, Test Hattrick, T20 WC 2007 & ODI WC 2011 Winner, 236 ODI's & 269 ODI Wickets. He can be very proud of his achievements. Losing his Father in the year 2000 and at one point he was even contemplating to quit Cricket but the 2001 Border Gavaskar was a very massive turning point in his career & Indian Cricket. 32 Wickets in 3 matches against the the Greatest Test Team Of All Time Probably and all the 4 performances have been included in the Wisden's Best 100 Spells of All Time. He has also done extremely well in New Zealand, South Africa & West Indies. Harbhajan Singh's averages 24.19 in New Zealand, 34 in South Africa & 25.86 in West Indies. He has taken 3 Five Wicket Hauls in West Indies, 1 Five Wicket Haul in New Zealand, 1 Five Wicket Haul in South Africa & 1 Five Wicket Haul in England. Harbhajan Singh has 707 International Wickets for India which is the 2nd most for Anil Kumble. Bhajji Paaji Tussi Great Ho Aur Aap Hamesha Khush Rahe Yeh Meri Dil Se Dua Hai. !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[James]

I admire his character. I like how he could be quite impish and a bit of a street fighter out on the field, and how he was not afraid to give a few verbals back in pressurised match situations (as both a batter and as a bowler).

 

[Cover Drive Six]

Bajji is better spinner than Ashwin on batting friendly pitches particularly in SENA.