Every day I wake up with a dream and that is to get back into that Indian side: Bhajji turns 40 today.
From making a test debut in the Third Test against Australia in Bangalore to owning a company, bhajji won our hearts. Born on 3 July 1980 (age 39 years), Jalandhar, the unstoppable Sardar, turns 40 today.
As far as basic information is concerned, He is the former captain of IPL team Mumbai Indians and Punjab for the 2012–13 Ranji Trophy season. Singh made his Test and One Day International (ODI) debuts in early 1998. His career was initially affected by investigations into the legality of his bowling action, as well as several disciplinary incidents. However, in 2001, with leading leg spinner Anil Kumble injured, Harbhajan’s career was resuscitated after Indian captain Sourav Ganguly called for his inclusion in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy team. In that series victory over Australia, Harbhajan established himself as the team’s leading spinner by taking 32 wickets, becoming the first Indian bowler to take a hat trick in Test cricket.He is also an Officer in the Punjab Police and has held the rank of a Superintendent of police (India), reporting to Punjab Police HQ at Barnala. A finger injury in mid-2003 sidelined him for much of the following year, allowing Kumble to regain his position as the first choice spinner in Tests and ODI’s. Harbhajan reclaimed a regular position in the team upon his return in late 2004 but often found himself watching from the sidelines in Test matches outside the Indian subcontinent with typically only one spinner, Kumble, being used.
Throughout 2006 and into early 2007, Harbhajan’s accumulation of wickets fell and his bowling average increased, and he was increasingly criticized for bowling defensively with less loop. Following India’s first-round elimination from the 2007 Cricket World Cup, Harbhajan was replaced by other spinners in the national squad for both formats. He regained a regular position in the team in late 2007 but became the subject of more controversy. In early 2008, he was given a ban by the International Cricket Council (ICC) for racially vilifying Andrew Symonds. The ban was revoked upon appeal, but in April, Harbhajan was banned from the 2008 Indian Premier League and suspended from the ODI team by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for slapping Sreesanth after a match. He appeared in Total Nonstop Action Wrestling’s Indian promotion, Ring Ka King. He was in the World Cup-winning team of 2011 Cricket World Cup.
Below are some facts about Bhajji:-
1)Nayan Mongia established his nickname”Bhajji”.
2)He started to play cricket, at the international level, when he was just 18 years old.
3)He has taken over 400 test wickets with an utter sense of ease.
4)He expresses that his lucky number is 3 and he generally wears jersey number 3 while playing his passion.
5)He had picked 32 wickets, against Australia in 2000-2001, in a 3 test series.
6)His father insisted him to concentrate on cricket carrier and represent the nation.
7)In 2001, he organized marriage of his 3 sisters, in unison.
8)In 2008, Harbhajan was banned by the ICC and was charged for racial insult towards Andrew Symonds.
9)After his performance against Australia in 2001, Punjab Government offered him to become an honorary Deputy Superintendent of Punjab Police.
10)He is the first no. 8 batsman to score back-to-back Test centuries. He achieved this feat in the 2010 home Test series against New Zealand. Harbhajan Singh has made our nation proud and there is no doubt in the statement, “He had been a remarkable player in the history of Indian cricket.”
We wish you ‘Happy Birthday’, indomitable paaji.