5 great performances by 'Bhajji' that shall give hope to Indian Fans

The cry,‘Nice bowling Bhajji! Come on Bhajji!’ shall soon be heard echoing in an international match as the ‘Turbanator’ is all set to return in the Indian white flannels against Bangladesh in a one match Test series. After a very good hunt in the Indian Premier League (IPL), his call-up was inevitable.

Harbhajan, himself would never tend to erase the following fond memories and as it is said ‘A wounded Lion is more Dangerous’. Craving to make a comeback into the national side, we might just get to see the old ‘Harbhajan’ back again.

Sandeep Patil, the chief of the BCCI selection committee has cited the number of left handers in the Bangladesh team as the major reason for picking up Harbhajan. With questions about his future career under the hammer, this series has pushed him into a ‘do or die’ situation.

If yes, here are five of his best previous performances in the Test arena that give the fans a beam of hope that Bhajji will be back.

Hunting the Kiwis: (2009, Hamilton)

Bhajji lifted by his mates after picking a wicket

The tossing and turning Harbhajan made a huge impact on the game by turning it towards his team’s favor in the second innings. Put into bat, New Zealand were bundled for 279 thanks to the likes of Zaheer Khan, Ishant Sharma and Munaf Patel who toppled the Kiwis’ batting line up. Harbhajan did not have much to do except for picking up one wicket.

India replied with a humungous 520, riding on the master Sachin Tendulkar’s 160. Trailing by 241 runs, Martin Guptill and Daniel Flynn were steadying the ship before Harbhajan came to the party.

Dismissing the well set Guptill for 48, Harbhajan continued his rampage by picking up Flynn for 67. His next prey was the first innings centurion, Jesse Ryder who fell to a straight ball. Bhajji added one more left hander to his tally by dismissing James Franklin of a flighted delivery.

The Kiwi’s skipper Daniel Vettori was the next to go and Harbhajan finished with figures of 6 for 63. Chasing a meager target of 39 was not a tough one for India as they did it with all 10 wickets in hand.

Another masterclass at Kolkata: (vs South Africa in 2004)

Eden has been a happy hunting ground for Harbhajan

This ‘Man of the Match’ performance shall go down as an unforgettable one in Harbhajan’s career. At one of Harbhajan’s favourite hunting ground, the Eden Gardens, South Africa posted a total of 305 in the first innings, in which he cleaned up the tail with his two wickets.

Sehwag and Dravid chipped in with half centuries and a few cameos by the middle order took India to 411. The second innings for South Africa started in a good pace with the openers Graeme Smith and Andrew Hall building a healthy partnership.

The move to bring in the off-spinner worked well for Ganguly as Harbhajan sent off the top 5 batsmen of the opposition, back to the pavilion. His victims were Smith, Hall, Jacques Rudolph, Kallis and the dangerous Hashim Amla. He ransacked the batting line up with two more wickets as South Africa declined to 222.

Again, chasing 120 runs with the likes of a formidable batting line up was not a Himalayan task for India.

Harbhajan picked up 7 wickets for 87 runs which earned him the Man of the Match. His performance led India to victory in the match, thus clinching the two match series 1-0.

Crushing the Caribbeans: (2002, Mumbai)

That windies lineup had several left handers in it

It was at the Wankhede where India scripted their first ever innings victory against the West Indies. With two centuries at the top courtesy Sehwag and Dravid, India took the driver’s seat with a total of 457.

West Indies’ strong batting order was brought down by Zaheer Khan and Anil Kumble in the first innings as each scalped 4 wickets. An economic Harbhajan picked up just 1 wicket, that of the left hander Wavell Hinds.

With follow on enforced, to wrap up the match, India needed another stupendous performance with the ball and it was the Turbanator who rose to the occasion.

He swept off the well set Gayle and Hinds to start the proceedings. Along with Anil Kumble, he took care of the middle order followed by which he wasted no time to tumble the tail. He gave away just 48 runs and picked up 7 wickets with 12 maidens and this performance stands as a testimony of how he can turn the tides.

Conquering Chepauk: (2001, Chennai)

Bhajji parading the trophy around Chepauk

After a vintage performance at the Edens in the 2nd Test of the Border-Gavaskar series, he continued with a recap in Chennai.

Batting first, Australia were cruising towards a big total as Matthew Hayden fastened his innings on one side.

Removing Justin Langer first up, the Punjab spinner did not miss to get rid of his bunny Ricky Ponting yet another time. Adam Gilchrist and Shane Warne made sure to contribute to Harbhajan’s figures while Hayden was still shouldering Australia from the other side. He did not spare the marauding Aussie opener as he finally fell for 203 off his bowling.

The Turbanator finished with figures of 7/133. India’s top 3 contributed with half centuries while Sachin Tendulkar notched up a fine century to take India to 501, giving India a healthy lead of 110.

Australia were again not able to withstand the on-roll Bhajji, who spared just two Australian wickets for his fellow bowlers. India dragged to chase down the target of 155, to get hold of the Border - Gavaskar Trophy. With match winning figures of 15/217, Harbhajan was declared rightly as the man of the match and the man of the series.

Excellence at the Eden:

Bhajji celebrating after completing his hat-trick

Undoubtedly, the most prolific and sublime show staged by Harbhajan was the one at his favorite Eden Gardens against the then World Champions Australia. The Indian bowlers were made to toil in the sun but Bhajji kept picking up wickets at regular intervals. Depriving Hayden of a 100, he sent back the Waugh brothers too. Ponting , Gilchrist and Shane Warne surrendered themselves in consecutive deliveries as Bhajji created history by becoming the first Indian to pick up a hat-trick in Tests.

With a mammoth 445 on the board, Australia hoarded the Indian batsman for mediocre 171. Follow on was enforced on India and the rest is history. Resurrecting the match from debris, VVS Laxman’s blistering 281 and Dravid’s poignant 180 took India to 657.

Australia were left in amusement with a competent target of 384 posing infront of them. For everyone who backed the visitors to chase it down, Harbhajan had something else to say. Along with Sachin Tendulkar, Bhajji hunted the Kangaroos to bring them down to 212. The Aussie batsmen were again hypnotized by the Punjabi’s off spin. Bhajji was the unsung hero with his heap of 13 wickets in the match (7- first innings and 6- second innings).