Former Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh’s recent comments might spark speculation about whether he was taking an indirect jab at former captain Virat Kohli, following India’s 3-0 humiliating whitewash against New Zealand.
Praise for Rohit, dig at Kohli?
In what appeared to be a pointed observation, Harbhajan praised current captain Rohit Sharma’s accountability while simultaneously highlighting how some previous captains handled defeats differently. “Whenever a team wins, the captain is lauded very well. At the same time, when a team loses, the captain has to receive criticism. So it’s a part and parcel of the game,” Harbhajan stated while talking to ANI.
The veteran spinner then added what many interpret as a veiled reference to past leadership: ” Bohot saare Kaptaan aise bhi the jinhone kabhi zimmedariya nahi li, par Jeet ki khushi m sabse aage aake khade huye hai. (There were many skippers in the previous time as well who never took the blame for losses but were always in front whenever their team won.)” The timing and context of these comments are particularly noteworthy, coming after Rohit Sharma’s candid post-series reflection where he openly acknowledged his shortcomings.
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Rohit takes the blame for loss vs NZ
“I wasn’t at my best with both bat and as a captain, that’s something that’ll rankle me,” Rohit had admitted following the series defeat. The contrast between leadership styles became even more apparent when Rohit took collective responsibility for the team’s performance, stating, “We didn’t perform well collectively and that’s the reason for these losses.”
While Harbhajan didn’t explicitly name Kohli, the cricket community can connect the dots, given the timing of his comments and the apparent comparison between different captaincy approaches to handling defeats.
Gautam Gambhir coached, Indian cricket team has made an unfortunate record, becoming the first team to experience a clean sweep in a Test series on home ground when three or more matches are involved. This loss came at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, where India faltered in their chase of a modest target of 147 runs. Incredibly, both Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli failed as batters in the series. Combined they scored just 184 runs at a horrible average of 15.3.
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