New Delhi: Former Indian captain Anil Kumble reckons that India’s spin repertory was full of “quality bowlers” and rated comeback man Harbhajan Singh as one of the “best spinners in the country”.
India found new spin heroes in Ravichandran Ashwin and Pragyan Ojha in the absence of Harbhajan, who was not considered for national duty for a long time before making a comeback in the ongoing World T20.
Kumble, who is world’s third-highest wicket-taker with 619 scalps, said Harbhajan was exceptional and Ashwin’s main attribute was a calm head, which is crucial under pressure.
The former captain also said that leg-spinners such as Amit Mishra, Rahul Sharma and Piyush Chawla should be given a good number of opportunities.
Talking about the leading spinners of the country, Kumble said that in Ashwin, Harbhajan and Ojha, India have a very potent spin attack.
“You’ll never know the real calibre of a spinner if you don’t give him enough opportunities. Right now the spin cupboard is pretty healthy because there are two spinners (Ashwin and Ojha) who are performing on the field,” Kumble said.
“There’s Harbhajan who has the experience of picking 400 Test wickets and who’s a highly fierce competitor. When he comes back to being his best, you’ll have three quality spinners in the side plus the three leg-spinners waiting in the wings,” Kumble told the BCCI’s website on Monday.
Talking about Harbhajan, Kumble said he still has a lot to offer.
“He’s been exceptional. He lost a little bit of confidence and the only way to regain it is to be part of the team and play more and more matches. He’s done that before and I see no reason why he cannot perform again. I certainly feel that Bhajji is still one of the best spinners that we have in India and it’s just a matter of time before he comes back to bowling at his best,” he said.
Kumble explained why it should not be said that Harbhajan was under-performing in recent Tests.
“I don’t think he’s done badly at Test level. It’s just that he’s played a lot of matches outside of India.
“Not always is a spinner an attacking option when you go outside India. His role changes, especially in the first innings. He hasn’t lived up to the high standards he’s set for himself and hence people think that he’s under-performing,” he said. (PTI)