NEW DELHI: Indian commentator and former cricketer, Harbhajan Singh had some harsh words for Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma who underperformed during the five-test Border-Gavaskar Trophy and caused some concern for their spot in the test side. Eni and the other big player underperformed when the team most required them, pulling censure.
In one of his interviews Harbhajan also pointed out that choice should not be made depending on the player’s popularity and success of the ‘Bradman method’. He advocated as much that for senior players to be considered for the next Test tour in England they should go and play county cricket. He said, “It should be merit that counts whether it is Virat or Rohit. Workers and employers have soccer in common no matter how big they feel as super stars. “If senior players are being selected in the tour, make sure they play county cricket before the series.”
In the series, Kohli could manage only 190 runs in eight innings with an average of 23.75 and had been cleanly bowled four times by Scott Boland. Rohit got out for a meager 31 runs in three Tests.
Harbhajan saved barbs for the Indian team management selection policies through out the series and said that cricketers should be selected for the England tour as per their recent form not experience.
They complained about India’s team combination for the final Test in Sydney after getting a flavour of the pitch on offer when the pitch report highlighted a green-top deck which tend to support pacemen rather than spinners. Still, India decided to go in with two spinners, taking into account tendencies of the Sydney wicket. However, with Jasprit Bumrah out of the playing XI for the Johannesburg Test due to back problem , Wasim was critical of the decision .
Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna were left to do the job of containing Bangladesh to a small total of 162 after Bumrah had been ruled out of the match due to injury.
It also came as a shock to Harbhajan who asked, ‘How was the selection made?’ In essence, why should England play two spinners when they found no foot-holds on a wicket? For strengthening the batting, spinners were included for their batting, it would have been wiser to have taken a quality fast bowler. They are ense and rigid. The playing style of test cricket is not the same as T20 cricket.”
Harbhajan also appreciated Bumrah asserting that India would have been whitewashed 5-0 or 4-0 had it not been for the fast bowler. He also said, “If Jasprit Bumrah was not in the tour, the India would have lost 5-0 or 4-0 at the most. Bumrah bailed India out especially in Perth and the after theTest match in Adelaide, he comes into play.
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