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Time of India
2 days ago
- Sport
- Time of India
'No jealousy but pitches were ... ' Harbhajan Singh clears air on rift with R Ashwin, takes a jibe at Virat Kohli
Harbhajan Singh and R Ashwin (Screengrab) All it took was a one-hour-and-24-minute-long podcast to settle the alleged feud between India's two great off-spinners – Harbhajan Singh and R Ashwin . Poll Which bowler do you think had a greater impact on Indian cricket? Harbhajan Singh R Ashwin Both had equal impact Neither Harbhajan Singh played 103 Tests for India and picked up 417 wickets. R Ashwin ended his illustrious career with 537 wickets in 106 Tests. Until Ashwin surpassed Harbhajan's wicket tally in 2021, the latter was India's most successful off-spinner. Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW! But over the years, there was an unsaid tension between the two. Ashwin's emergence ended Harbhajan's Test career. However, on Kutti Stories with Ash , the latter settled all debate, saying he was never jealous of the Tamil Nadu spinner and clarified that he only used to criticise the pitches India played on at home during the captaincy of Virat Kohli . 'I just want to make one point very clear. When you came into the side, it immediately struck me that this could be the guy who will be playing for a long time,' admitted Harbhajan. 'I saw you as my competition. I was a senior who had picked up 400 wickets, and it did cross my mind. I thought I would have to step up my game. EXCLUSIVE: Nitish Kumar Reddy ruled out of England Test series 'But I feel everything happens for a reason. I played this game, I also replaced someone (Rajesh Chauhan). A place in the Indian cricket team is not permanent. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Top 15 Most Beautiful Women in the World Undo You cannot be there forever; somebody else will come and do better than you. 'I spoke about pitches. I stand by it even now. There was so much help from the wickets. I'm not saying this to make you feel bad, but I feel that the pitches we played on were different. It was evident — games were getting over in three or four days. 'But again, you have to bowl well to take wickets. I have bowled on rank turners where I failed to take a single wicket. 'I wasn't criticising pitches because Ashwin was taking wickets. My problem was with the kind of wickets that were getting prepared,' he added. Harbhajan also revealed that in 2015, during India's tour of Sri Lanka, he realised Ashwin was a superior bowler. ' We played together in Sri Lanka and you were bowling ten times better than me. There was zip in your bowling. I was not at my best. You were the player of the series. 'I was struggling to spin the ball. My skillset was not good enough. There was a mental blockade — that my partner is taking heaps of wickets and I am not. I realised on that tour that I needed to up my skills to match him. 'People say I was jealous of you — not even one percent of that is true. I was happy that you carried forward the off-spin legacy.' Catch Rani Rampal's inspiring story on Game On, Episode 4. Watch Here!
Mint
3 days ago
- Sport
- Mint
Ashwin speaks on alleged rift with Harbhajan, says, 'Even if you were jealous...'
Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], July 20 (ANI): Former Indian cricketers Harbhajan Singh and Ravichandran Ashwin collectively spoke on the alleged rift between them, with the recently retired Ashwin saying that even if the Indian spin great was indeed "jealous" of his success at one point, it was "justified and human." As Harbhajan stepped away from Tests in 2015 after a 103-match-long career with 417 wickets, Ashwin took his place as the first-choice spinner. Harbhajan's decline coincided with Ashwin's rise in international cricket as a genuine spin bowling all-rounder, and for long, reports about a rift between these two bowling greats ran rampant on social media, with some of Harbhajan's comments on Ashwin often taken as jabs towards his successor. Speaking in the teaser of season three of Kutti Stories with Ash on Ashwin's Instagram, Ashwin said to Harbhajan, "This whole jealousy bit. Before I allow you to answer that, let me clarify something. People look at everything from their perspective. For example, if they are passing a comment on me, they believe that others would see the world through their eyes. This comment that you are jealous of this person who is interviewing you today--what would that be about?" To this, Harbhajan asked if Ashwin thinks that he is jealous of him. Ashwin replied to this, "Even if you were jealous at one point, it is justified. That is my point. I would never take it the wrong way because we are all human. Naturally, it is bound to be like that." On his retirement from international cricket, which came during the middle of a disappointing Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, Ashwin dismissed that he was retiring because 25-year-old Washington Sundar was slowly making a case for a regular spot in the team with consistent performances following his return to the Test side last year during the home season. "Some people believe I retired because of Washington Sundar. He is in the thick of things now. All of this is the perspective of others," he concluded. In 106 tests for India, the legendary all-rounder took 537 wickets at an average of 24.00, with best figures of 7/59. He claimed 37 five-wicket hauls and eight ten-wicket match hauls in his Test career. He is the eighth-highest wicket-taker in Tests overall and the second-highest for India, behind Anil Kumble (619 wickets). Ashwin also holds the record for the second-most five-wicket hauls in Tests, trailing only Sri Lanka's Muttiah Muralitharan (67). With the bat, Ashwin scored 3,503 Test runs at an average of 25.75, including six centuries and 14 fifties in 151 innings, with a highest score of 124. In 116 ODIs, Ashwin took 156 wickets at an average of 33.20, with best figures of 4/25. He also scored 707 runs at an average of 16.44, including one fifty and a knock of 65 in 63 innings. He is the 13th-highest wicket-taker for India in the format. In 65 T20Is, he took 72 wickets and scored 184 runs in 19 innings. Across all formats, the 38-year-old took 765 wickets in 287 matches, making him India's second-highest wicket-taker after Anil Kumble (953 wickets). Ashwin was also a key member of the Indian teams that won the 2011 ICC Cricket World Cup and the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy. (ANI)
Time of India
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Do you think I am jealous of you? R Ashwin questions Harbhajan Singh, reveals reason behind his retirement
R Ashwin (left) and Harbhajan Singh Former India off-spinners Ravichandran Ashwin and Harbhajan Singh confronted each other about their careers, rivalry, and the jealousy factor that reportedly created a rift between the duo. Over the years, comparisons between Ashwin and fellow Indian spin legend Harbhajan Singh were frequent. Speculation about a rift between the two spinners has often surfaced, suggesting strained relations. Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW! In the explosive teaser of Season 3 of Kutti Stories with Ash, India's two great spinners can be seen clearing the air about the speculated rift between them. "This whole jealousy bit. Before I allow you to answer that, let me clarify something. People look at everything from their perspective. For example, if they are passing a comment on me, they believe that others would see the world through their eyes. This comment that you are jealous of this person who is interviewing you today — what would that..." Ashwin asked Harbhajan. Harbhajan replied, "Do you think I am jealous of you? You are sitting with me today, and we have spoken at length. Do you think I am that kind of person?" R Ashwin announces retirement from Test cricket Ashwin, in a very nonchalant way, replied, "Even if you are jealous at one point, it is justified. That is my point. I would never take it the wrong way because we are all human. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like No annual fees for life UnionBank Credit Card Undo Naturally, it is bound to be like that." Ashwin also cleared the air about his retirement. "Some people believe I retired because of Washington Sundar. He is in the thick of things now. All of this is the perspective of others," he said. Ashwin picked up 765 wickets in international cricket in 379 innings, while Harbhajan scalped 707 wickets in his illustrious career. After Ashwin's retirement from Test cricket, Harbhajan had already dispelled such rumours, asserting that there is no truth to claims of discord between them. Poll Do you believe there was ever a genuine rift between Ashwin and Harbhajan? Yes, definitely No, it was all speculation Not sure "I read social media only as much as I need to. If there is a standoff between me and Ashwin, or if there was ever any fight, quarrel or disagreement, I would be the first person to go up to him and ask what the issue is," Harbhajan Singh said on his YouTube channel. "But it was never like this, and it will never be like this, because whatever is in his destiny, he will get it, and I got whatever was in my destiny. He has been a phenomenal bowler for India. I am very happy for his achievements," he added. Catch Rani Rampal's inspiring story on Game On, Episode 4. Watch Here!
