Out-of-favour India off-spinner Harbhajan Singh has been handed a golden opportunity to get back into the reckoning after being named captain of Rest of India for the Irani Cup match against Ranji Trophy champions Karnataka, in Bangalore, from February 9 to 13. Also included in the Rest of India team is Gautam Gambhir, who is also keen to make a comeback to the Indian team. However, his Delhi team mate Virender Sehwag failed to make the cut after a poor run in the Ranji Trophy.
The Indian off-spinner bagged four wickets for 64 runs to put Surrey in a commanding position going into the final day of the County Championships Division One match against Worcestershire.
Harbhajan Singh has bailed India out of trouble with his willow more than once and is upset that he is still to score a hundred. 'I am very upset. I should have got a century. It was my best chance to score one,' said the off-spinner after hitting 60 and helping India reach 375 for nine on the opening day of the third Test against New Zealand in Wellington on Friday.
Ace India spinner Harbhajan Singh declared he has completely recovered from the hamstring injury that had kept him out of the Sri Lanka series and is raring to bowl on the tour of New Zealand. He expressed confidence that Mahendra Singh Dhoni's team will whitewash the Kiwis in the ODI series and topple Australia and South Africa in the ICC ODI Championship table.
Harbhajan Singh became the third Indian and 22nd cricketer in the world to claim 300 or more wickets in Test cricket when he dismissed Australia captain Ricky Ponting on the second day of the fourth and final Test in Nagpur on Friday. The Punjab offie, who is playing his 72nd Test, is behind just-retired Anil Kumble (619 from 132 Tests) and Kapil Dev (434 from 131 Tests).
Senior India off-spinner Harbhajan Singh said he is seeking legal advise on the way ahead after BCCI Ombudsman Justice (Retd) AP Shah observed that the bowler should dissociate himself from sports apparel company 'Bhajji Sports', which supplies kits to domestic teams. Shah had investigated the 'Conflict of Interest' issues raised by activist Neeraj Gundey, who had filed a number of such complaints with the 'Office of Ombudsman'. "I have received an e-mail communication from the Board. All I can say at this moment is that I am discussing the issue with my legal advisor. I will act according to his advice," Harbhajan told PTI on Thursday. The company 'Bhajji Sports' is owned by Mrs Avtar Kaur, who is the cricketer's mother. When a senior BCCI official was asked, he said that if Harbhajan is not the owner, anyone else can run the company, he said: "As long as Harbhajan's name does not feature among the owners of the company in any of the deeds, he will not be under the Conflict of Interest purview."
The Board of Control for Cricket in India appointed advocate Sudhir Nanavati as Commissioner for a preliminary inquiry into Harbhajan Singh's alleged slapping of India teammate and Indian Premier League opponent S Sreesanth.
Also making it to the list was left-arm paceman Zaheer Khan.
Nadeem clinched the gold medal with a stunning Olympic record throw of 92.97m while defending champion Chopra took the silver
The England spinner dismissed coach Duncan Fletcher's claim that he is the best finger spinner, saying Harbhajan Singh and Deniel Vettori are better bowlers.
An emotional Harbhajan Singh, who will go under the hammer for the first time in Indian Premier League auctions, said he is not disappointed that Mumbai Indians did not retain him.
Harbhajan Singh, who was dropped for the ODI series against England, has been ignored for the first Test against the West Indies, beginning November 8 at the Ferozeshah Kotla, in Delhi.
Harbhajan Singh pays tribute to Sourav Ganguly, the captain who transformed his career.
Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh voiced his concerns regarding Royal Challengers Bengaluru's bowling unit, which conceded the highest total in the history of the Indian Premier League against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.
The injury to Harbhajan gave the chance to Murali Kartik to make another of his infrequent appearances in the team.
The Indian off-spinner says he'll have five fielders on the on-side for the Sri Lanka batsman in Sunday's final.
India spinner Harbhajan Singh on Wednesday conceded that India let slip the third Test out of their hands and reckons that their pace department could have done a better job.
Reader Bodhisattwa Dasgupta sent us a picture of Harbhajan Singh from Mumbai.
The offspinner is likely to undergo the operation at the same Baltimore hospital as Sachin Tendulkar.
In a surprising decision, the Master Blaster handed over the responsibility to Harbhajan Singh. The off-spinner, who led Mumbai to the Champions League T20 title last September, will captain the side in the fifth edition of the tournament.
The Indian coach said the off-spinner as well as the team is "relaxed".
"Too much focus on Twenty20" is harming Harbhajan Singh's international cricket career but the out-of-favour Indian off-spinner needs to be supported instead of being cold shouldered, feels former Pakistan tweaker Saqlain Mushtaq.
Sunil Gavaskar has welcomed the return of Harbhajan Singh to the Indian cricket team after more than two years, saying the off-spinner looks in good form even though he doesn't need to prove anything to anyone with close to 700 international wickets under his belt.
Embattled Ricky Ponting has received support from an unexpected quarter in the form of Harbhajan Singh who said it is a big mistake to write off the former Aussie skipper.
Harbhajan Singh and Yuvraj Singh on Monday made their comebacks into the Indian team, for the first two Test matches against England next week.
Gautam Gambhir was the star performer for India with the bat with more than 1000 runs in both Tests and ODIs, that included three centuries each in both formats.
Harbhajan Singh, who was dropped for the ODI series against England, has been ignored for the first Test against the West Indies, beginning November 8 at the Ferozeshah Kotla, in Delhi.
These two guys could have been very handy in the World Cup, especially in conditions where they know what to do and how to take wickets. So, I believe these two guys, simply in India, have missed it, former Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh on Thursday
BCCI president Sharad Pawar described as "proper" the judgement given by ICC Appeals Commissioner John Hansen, who decided to drop the racial charges against Harbhajan Singh and lifted the three-Test ban on him.
The ICC is unable to find a lasting solution to the issue of his suspect bowling action.
With another season of the Indian Premier League round the corner, Harbhajan Singh is hopeful that Mumbai Indians would be able to win their maiden crown this time.
It is still not clear whether the off-spinner would need to undergo surgery on his injured finger
Mumbai Indians upstaged defending champions Chennai Super Kings despite missing some key players in their Champions League Twenty20 opener and stand-in skipper Harbhajan Singh felt his side's cause was helped by the inspiring presence of injured regular captain Sachin Tendulkar in the dressing room.
In a big setback for North Zone ahead of the Duleep Trophy semi-final against Central Zone, captain Harbhajan Singh has been forced to sit out due to viral fever as Gautam Gambhir will step in to lead the team, in Mohali, on Wednesday.
Former India captain Sourav Ganguly took a swipe at the selectors' decision to omit leftarm spinner Pragyan Ojha, especially after a 10-wicket haul in his last Test.
The Africa Cricket Association (ACA) has started dialogue with the Asian Cricket Council (ACC) and other stakeholders to revive the once popular Afro-Asia Cup
Tendulkar relinquishing his position to Harbhajan could have a two-fold effect: on the one hand it would definitely help Tendulkar, sans any responsibility (read pressure) focus solely on his batting, and, secondly, additional responsibility might just help Harbhajan get back into rhythm.
