Sporting icons : Harbhajan Singh: The Turbanator & Indian Off-Spin legend - Career HLs , video

 


Harbhajan Singh: The Turbanator Who Gave India Its Off-Spin Edge


Harbhajan Singh was one of the best off spinners to have played for India . The highly competitive cricketer he went in to become a highly successful bowler for India during the early 2000s & had a long career 

Introduction & Style of Play

  • Full name: Harbhajan Singh Plaha
  • Born: 3 July 1980, Jalandhar, Punjab, India
  • Primary role: Right-arm off-break bowler, lower-order right-hand bat
  • Style: Classical off-spinner with a quick, whippy action, sharp drift, and a fiercely spun doosra. Aggressive by nature, he loved attacking fields, contested every appeal, and was an agile boundary rider with a bullet throw.

International Career Highlights

Format Span M Wkts Avg 5-WI BB Runs Avg Catches
Tests 1998-2015 103 417 32.46 25 8/84 2 224 18.22 42
ODIs 1998-2015 236 269 33.35 3 5/31 1 237 13.94 73
T20Is 2006-2016 28 25 25.32 0 4/12 108 10.80 9

Key milestones

  • First Indian to a Test hat-trick (vs Australia, Kolkata 2001).
  • Joint-fastest Indian to 400 Test wickets (in 96 matches).
  • Played in three World Cup finals (2003, 2007 T20, 2011) and lifted the 2007 T20 & 2011 50-over trophies.
  • ICC Test Player of the Year nominee, 2002 & 2009.

IPL & Domestic Record

Format Span M Wkts Avg Econ BB Runs Avg
IPL (MI, CSK, KKR) 2008-2021 163 150 26.87 7.07 5/18 833 14.48
First-class 1997-2020 198 780 28.44 41 × 5-WI 8/84 6 337 19.10

IPL titles: 2008 CLT20, 2013, 2015 (Mumbai Indians) & 2018 (Chennai Super Kings).
Domestic pillar: Captained Punjab, breaching 750 FC wickets—fifth-highest by an Indian.

Signature Bowling Spells

  1. 8/84 & 6/73 vs Australia, Kolkata 2001 – The heart of the “Miracle of Eden”; his hat-trick (Gilchrist, Waugh, Ponting) and 13-wicket match haul flipped a follow-on into an epic Indian win.
  2. 7/120 vs England, Mumbai 2002 – Tore through England with bounce and turn on a placid Wankhede track.
  3. 5/33 vs Pakistan, Karachi 2004 ODI – Quelled a 343-run chase with a doosra-laden middle-overs burst.
  4. 4/12 vs England, Durban 2007 T20 WC – Tilted the must-win Super-8 clash, paving India’s route to the inaugural T20 crown.
  5. 5/59 vs South Africa, Cape Town 2011 – Masterclass in away conditions, ensuring a rare Indian Test win in SA.

Unforgettable Batting Cameos

  • 102 vs New Zealand, Ahmedabad 2010 (Test)* – From 15/5 he fought back with his maiden century, adding 163 with Laxman.
  • Bombay-Duck Smash: 37 off 15 (vs West Indies, Kingston 2002 ODI) – Hook-heavy cameo sealed a tense chase.
  • IPL Super-Over Sixes (2015) – 24*(8) vs Punjab, single-handed rescue for Mumbai. His 1 000+ IPL runs came at SR = 138.


Legacy

Harbhajan was the first great modern Indian off-spinner after Kumble, reviving the art of flight and drift when wrist-spin reigned. His fiery Eden Gardens hat-trick became folklore, catalysing India’s ascent under Ganguly. Off the field he helped mentor spinners like R Ashwin and Kuldeep Yadav. Post-retirement (Dec 2021) he turned commentator, politician, and franchise mentor, but remains forever “The Turbanator” whose rip-roaring revolutions rattled world-class batsmen and changed the tone of Indian spin bowling for a generation.

Below watch Harbhajan's remarkable bowling performance of 7/87 vs South Africa in 2011 in South Africa. 

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