Harbhajan needs to find himself afresh

Harbhajan Singh's twin centuries were a joy to watch, evidence that he can bat, and proof to himself, more than to anyone else, that he was selling himself short sometimes. They don't tell you anything more, and indeed, like most good things, they come with a warning. India now have a more confident No. 8, someone who can stand up to the bowling and shield those below. But India do not have a new No. 7. It would be delusional to think so. It might seem like just a number here and there, and might be workable occasionally for tactical reasons, but batting at No. 7 places a lot of responsibility on the batsman. Suddenly the fifty is no longer a bonus but a necessity. A quick thirty that might boost the score is not good enough. As their No. 1 spin bowler, Harbhajan needs to win India matches, to work on his craft constantly, to widen his repertoire, indeed even to have time to iron out the little faults that could creep in sometimes. He needs to define himself as the country's No. 1 bowler - certainly he must believe he is - and revel in that role; think as deeply about his bowling as a Tendulkar or a Dravid might about their batting. It is a mindset that could get diluted by thoughts of being an allrounder (which, in any case, has long lost its original definition: as a player who can earn his place in the side as a bowler or batsman alone). Accordingly Harbhajan will need to guard against believing that taking two wickets and scoring 45 is good enough. Taking five wickets and scoring 15 would be a more valuable contribution most times. This is not to suggest that he ignore his batting. No, banish the thought. Merely that he needs to regard himself as a bowling match-winner first. Harbhajan has now spent twelve and a half years as an India player and has tended to give the impression in recent times that he is fatigued. It can happen to the best - when your tricks become familiar, your metaphors tired, your slower balls predictable. But it is also a phase that separates the best from the very good. Like Sachin Tendulkar and Anil Kumble did, the great ride the phase and remain standing. When they are not playing as well as they can play, they are still good enough to be better than the challengers. It is a phase that Harbhajan is going through. In the last two Test matches there has been a hint of a new dawn, but South Africa will be the challenge. And yet he needs to look no further than the man he admires greatly, Kumble. At the same stage in life, after twelve and a half years, Kumble had 349 wickets from 76 Tests to Harbhajan's 378 from 90. From here on, Kumble took a staggering 270 wickets in his last 56 matches. After 90 Tests, Kumble had 434 wickets, he took another 175 from the next 42. These are numbers that Harbhajan can look to for inspiration without getting bowled over by their magnitude. Kumble's last few years were defined by the strength of his resolve; seen not as much on the field of play as in ensuring that he was fit and ready to go; in constantly analysing and reinventing his craft. When the famous rocket ball started to desert him, he started looping it up more, began bowling the googly that he gripped between thumb and forefinger. But at all times he searched for wickets, at all times he believed that he was going to get them. Some days he dragged his body along. It is this sort of doggedness that might characterise the second half of Harbhajan's career. It is a phase he is well into now. As his body starts asking more questions, as opposition batsmen experience a sense of déjà vu watching him bowl, as challengers emerge, it is his attitude, his resolve, that will see him through. Indeed, I wonder if a challenger will spur Harbhajan on the way his presence drove Kumble to seek more from himself. That challenger is not threatening at the moment but will arrive, for that is the way of all life. Glenn McGrath once told me of how he retreated briefly - only metaphorically, of course - to ask himself what kind of cricketer he was and what he sought from his game. Musicians and writers do it and often return refreshed. Maybe he should take a break from limited-overs cricket for a couple of months, start bowling Test match lines, master again the loop and the bounce that marked him out as someone special. And return for the World Cup. As a bowler, Harbhajan stands at the crossroads. Ahead of him is a door, beyond which lies the path that can take him towards greatness as a bowler. Unlike with lesser cricketers, I believe the key to that door lies with him.

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