Maturing with every match
He might be just 26 but Harbhajan Singh has seen some turbulent times. Siddhartha Vaidyanathan caught up with him
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan
06-Jul-2006
He might be just 26 but Harbhajan Singh has seen some turbulent
times. Bursting on to the international scene with stories of a teenage rebellion accompanying him, he continues to be shrouded by mystery every
now and again. In a freewheeling interview with Cricinfo, Harbhajan
chatted about his tour of the Caribbean with India, his attitude towards spin bowling
and much more.
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You began this tour under pressure, especially considering your lean
series against Pakistan and England.
In the first two matches
in Pakistan, there was no chance for the bowlers,
whatever you bowled. It was a different experience. I would say that tour
was the most difficult tour for me, not in terms of getting wickets, but
because of bowling on those pitches. One needs to see a fair game where
good batting and good bowling is encouraged - something like Australia,
where everyone gets help. The matches India and Pakistan played were
something which nobody had seen earlier.
I thought I bowled well in the Test series against England, just that I
didn't get the wickets I deserved. Some catches went down too. Still, eight
wickets in three Tests is not satisfying. I knew wickets will come but
didn't know when. The first one-dayer against England at Delhi
was very,
very important for me. It was important to get back my confidence. We had
been dismissed for just around 200 and it was a crucial time to bowl.
After many days, I felt so good. It was great to be back with those five
wickets.
Were you happy with your performance in the one-dayers here?
I enjoyed myself. I got wickets in the first three one-dayers and didn't
in the last two. I was quite happy with my bowling rhythm. The ball was
landing where I wanted it to and was doing what I was trying. I only got a
few wickets but sometimes you bowl well and don't end up with too many. My
economy rate is less than 3.6 in the last 25 games which is a big
achievement for me, especially considering that I've bowled in the powerplays.
There has been constant criticism about you being a different bowler
with the SG ball and the Kookaburra ball.
It's something that people have made up. When I made that statement, I
wasn't complaining. I was just saying that it's different bowling with the
SG or Duke compared to the Kookaburra. That story got blown out of
proportion. I did badly in two games and people began relating everything
to the ball. Even today I say, it's a different ball but I am not
complaining. I took eight wickets in Jamaica last time with this same make
of ball. I took 11 wickets in this Test series with the same make of ball.
We play a lot in India are used to playing with the SG. Shane Warne plays
mainly in Australia and when he comes to India he says the SG is
different. It's bigger. So there is no big story there.
How difficult is it to make the transition from one-dayers to
Tests?
In both ODIs and Tests, if you go into a defensive mode, it will be tough
for you to survive. You have to be attacking. I don't change my line much.
If you don't attack then the batsman will attack you. This is my theory.
If I am bowling in an ODI, I know the batsman will come at me. My job is
to bowl good balls. If you are bowling dot balls, that creates pressure.
It's the same in Test cricket also; build the pressure, bowl maiden overs
and try to get wickets.
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They say spinners mature with age. Can you see that happening?
Yes, I am not the same bowler what I was four years back. I am learning in
every match [that] I am a different cricketer. When I started my career, I
was trying to cement my place for the next match. Now my thinking is that
I want to play longer and win matches. The team looks up at you because
they know I have done it and they know I can do it. So with time your
responsibilities change.
They say the great players normally reach such heights because they know the
ins and outs of their own game. Have you understood your own game
completely?
I know what I do now. During the Australia series in 2001, whatever I was
doing, it was working. The Australia series
was the turning point of my
career. It gave me the self-belief that I can do it - that when I do this,
that happens, when I bowl there, that will happen. Before that I had never
taken five wickets in Test cricket. In that series I took five wickets,
got a hat-trick too, I took a total of 32 wickets in the series. I was in a
daze; I didn't even know when the series [was] over, because whatever I was
doing was clicking; catches being caught, the ball pitching where I
wanted to. That series gave me the self belief. The confidence went to
another level and the hunger kept increasing.
Until recently you were India's first choice spinner in Tests. How has
the competition with Anil Kumble been?
I have to accept that nobody in Indian cricket has achieved what Anil
Kumble has. I know if one spinner has to play I will have to miss some
matches. It is always challenging. When you are not playing and then
suddenly get a chance, you want to do well. It's fun when there is a
challenge. I feel privileged I get to bowl with such a great bowler from
the other end. I get to learn a lot from him.
Siddhartha Vaidyanathan is staff writer of Cricinfo