New Delhi: Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh has heavily criticised senior Indian players after the team’s 3-1 defeat against Australia in the recently concluded Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. Harbhajan said the selection in the Indian team should be based on performance and not on reputation while targeting seniors like Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.
India suffered a 6-wicket defeat in the fifth and final Test against Australia in Sydney on Sunday to lose the Border-Gavaskar Trophy and get knocked out of the race for the World Test Championship (WTC) 2023-25 final. Rohit and Kohli’s performances have come under the scanner following India’s defeat as the duo failed to make a mark in the series.
Both Rohit and Kohli struggled throughout the Test series, sparking concerns over their long-term future for India in Tests. While Rohit managed only 31 runs in three Tests before being left out of the playing XI for the final 5th Test in Sydney, Kohli finished the series with 190 runs from 5 matches. Barring his unbeaten century in the series opener in Perth, Kohli looked out of sorts in the entire series.
Reacting to Rohit and Kohli’s horror show in the Australia series, Harbhajan said there should be an end to superstar culture in the Indian team and everyone should be held accountable irrespective of their stature. Speaking about Kohli and Rohit’s potential selection for the England Test series later this year, Harbhajan said they should be asked to play county cricket first to prove their form.
“The selection should be based on the performance, whether Virat or Rohit. No player is bigger than the game, even if they think they are superstars in their minds. If you want to take senior players on tour, you have to make sure they play county cricket before the England series,” Harbhajan said on his YouTube channel.
Everything was fine till Rahul Dravid was there: Harbhajan Singh
Harbhajan also wondered what went wrong for the Indian team after former head coach Rahul Dravid stepped down from his position. The ex-spinner pointed out how all was well with the Indian team as they lifted the 2024 T20 World Cup trophy under Dravid. However, ever since Gautam Gambhir took over, a lot has gone wrong for the Indian team.
“In the past six months, we lost to Sri Lanka, a series whitewash against New Zealand and now a 3-1 defeat in Australia. Everything was fine till Rahul Dravid was there. India won the World Cup, and everything was fine. But what happened suddenly?” asked Harbhajan.
India would aim to regroup and bounce back strongly when they take on England in a white-ball series at home in their next assignment. India will play 5 T20Is and 3 ODIs against England ahead of the all-important Champions Trophy 2025. The T20I series is all set to get underway from Wednesday, January 22.
Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh has slammed the superstar culture in Indian team stating that no is bigger than the game. Harbhajan comments came after India’s 3-1 loss in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 against Australia. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
