Harbhajan Singh (Photo by Mike Egerton/PA Images via Getty Images)
Veteran off-spinner Harbhajan Singh raised questions over the spin-friendly pitches in India following the Rohit Sharma-led side’s defeat in the 2023 ICC World Test Championship (WTC) final against Australia. Rohit and Co. suffered a 209-run defeat against the Pat Cummins-led side in the one-off Test at The Oval in London on Sunday, June 11. This was India’s second consecutive defeat in the WTC final. Meanwhile, after winning the title, Australia became the first team in history to clinch all International Cricket Council (ICC) trophies.
Harbhajan stated that by completing Test matches in three days on spin-friendly Indian surfaces, India is unable to prepare for major encounters and must work hard for the entire five days as a habit. He further stated that fast bowlers do not get many opportunities to bowl on these wickets, spinners are utilized from the first over, and there are a number of issues that need to be addressed.
You will have to develop a habit of working hard for five days: Harbhajan Singh
“You cannot give yourself that fake confidence after playing and winning matches on bad pitches where the ball starts spinning from ball one. You will have to develop a habit of working hard for five days. Only then you will find yourself prepared better for these big matches. Fast bowlers do not get to bowl much on these pitches, spinners are used right from the first over. There are a lot of things we should rectify,” Harbhajan told Star Sports post the match.
The wickets were particularly spin-friendly in the recently concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy between India and Australia at home earlier in 2023, and three out of four Tests were completed in three days. Spinners dominated the four-match series at home, with the top wicket-takers being Ravichandran Ashwin (25 wickets), Ravindra Jadeja (22 wickets), and Nathan Lyon (22 wickets). Notably, India clinched the four-game series 2-1.