India International

Indian off spinner Harbhajan Singh's strained relations with the Australians go back to the historic summer of 2001.

By Rajarshi Gupta

The then Indian captain Sourav Ganguly had called on the young Sikh to take on the rampaging Australians after seasoned leg spinner Anil Kumble had been ruled out with an injury.

The Australian camp was relaxed. After all, the horrors Kumble had infilicted on them on their last tour of India in 1998 was still fresh. After the way the visitors demolished India in Mumbai, with Matthew Hayden and Adam Gilchrist blasting centuries, the Aussie camp was oozing in confidence.

However, the saga was yet to begin. The rampaging Aussies were all set to knock the stuffing out of India's sail at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata till Bhajji banged in, scalping the first hat trick by any Indian in Test cricket and sending the packed Eden to rapturous celebrations. The annihilation had begun and did not end till the third and final Test in Chennai by when, the man who has since been tagged "The Turbanator" rattled up 33 Australian wickets and led India to a historic 2-1 series win.

As the years went by, Bhajji may have seen his own share of lows, juxtaposed with his moments of complete elevation. But he has continued to torment the Australians with guile and tenacity.

In the 11 Tests that Bhajji has played against the Oz, he has chalked out 64 wickets at an average of 28.81. He has claimed seven or more wickets against the Aussies thrice and bagged ten wicket hauls in three instances, leaving the champions grasping for dear breath.

Four Australians take pride of place, right on the top, in his tally of the batsmen he has dismissed the most number of times, with Ricky Ponting being dismissed eight times in nine matches, Adam Gilchrist seven times in 10 matches, Matthew Hayden seven times in 10 matches and Jason Gillespie six times in seven matches.

No wonder then that the Australian media and players are perpetually on his back trying to bring down the champion in him. Gilchrist, who retired from all forms of the game earlier this year after serving Australia with distinction for over a decade, had once gone or record saying the Aussies feared Harbhajan for his aggression.

The off spinner has never shied away from a confrontation and has given back the pleasantries as generously. When he got into that infamous row with fallen Australian all rounder Andrew Symonds in Sydney and got away unscathed after an ICC hearing, the Australians again bayed for his blood with Hayden calling him an "obnoxious weed" on a national radio channel.

But Bhajji fought through all of that and showed why he is the champion all of India believe him to be. He bowled out of his skin to help India win the CB Series.

With reports coming in that Symonds has not been able to forgive his cricket board for not standing by him during the Sydney row and his complete breakdown, Bhajji may afford himself a smile and cherish the edge he has over the Australians.