India v New Zealand - Harbhajan Singh's batting is a bonus but should not be at the cost of his bowling

 After the retirement of Anil Kumble it was thought that Harbhajan Singh will carry on the legacy of Kumble with enough guiles and with Zaheer Khan, Harbhajan was expected to reap a rich harvest. Zaheer Khan is as usual sharp and productive but sadly, Harbhajan has lost his wicket-taking abilities a lot.  

When India needed something from Harbhajan, for a while, he has always failed to deliver his team. But for Harbhajan if the wickets are not coming then he has decided to use the willow in most effective manner. In crisis moments, he might not have been able to fetch wickets but surprisingly he has been able to pluck important runs for his team quite consistently.  

 At Ahmedabad in the first Test against New Zealand, a good Indian reply on the first day met a sorry tale in the second day. India needed enough runs to post a fighting total. The cream of the Indian batting line-up had gone for the pavilion but, Harbhajan’s bat scripted 69 runs to post a respective total of 487.

In the second innings, it was a disastrous scenario for India at 65 for 6 and a shocking defeat was knocking at the door. Again, the bat of Harbhajan Singh scripted a hundred to ensure a safe draw.

In the second Test at Hyderabad, in reply to New Zealand’s first innings total of 350, India, despite Sehwag’s blast, were found wanting. New Zealand had been brilliant on the field and were desperate to stop any loose balls that were to be hit for boundary by the Indian batsmen. When Laxman was dismissed the Kiwis were jubilant and thought that thye had bagged the match.

But Harbhajan was still at the crease.

Harbhajan was never shy to play any aggressive shots but they were essayed in amore controlled manner. At 367 for 9, when Ojha left, India had gained a thin lead of 17 runs, but Bhaji decided to for more runs and with Sreesanth he essayed a partnership of 105 runs for the last wicket and India gained a lead of 122 runs. In the mean time Harbhajan Singh completed his second consecutive hundred of the series with 7 fours and 7 sixes. And with this he became the first number 8 batsman to score a consecutive hundreds in Test cricket. 

Harbhajan’s batting is more about entertainment – aggressive stroke-play but no brain-explosions. His batting speaks of a sense of responsibility, a duty which one must do when the team needs it most. He wields the bat almost like a Dhanraj Pillai and smacks the ball like Dhanraj hits the hockey ball and his batting instincts matches Virender Sehwag – if the ball is there to be hit then it must run towards the boundary.

Harbhajan’s batting is more productive than his bowling at present. To have such an effective batsman in the tail is a bonus for any team. But Harbhajan’s main task is with the ball. India needs his bowling more. It’s good that Harbhajan is turning out to be an allrounder but, that should not undermine his bowling at all.

India would love to have Harbhajan as the bowling allrounder and not as the batting allrounder. Harbhajan’s batting is a bonus for India but not at the cost of his wonderful offspinners.

Thank You

Faisal Caesar