Amid lockdown in almost every country due to the coronavirus pandemic, many cricketers are engaging in live chat sessions to talk about the future of cricket as well as some memorable incidents in their respective careers.
Following the bandwagon, veteran Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh participated in a chat session with another quality spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and termed Australia as ‘very bad losers’ while recalling the famous Eden Gardens Test in 2001.
The Indian off-break bowler reminisced the moment when he dismissed Glenn McGrath for the last wicket which gave India the memorable victory. Bhajji said that the Aussie stood his ground while expressing discontent at the umpire’s verdict. Harbhajan opined that it must have been an awkward situation for the Kangaroos as they lost the game from a comfortable position.
“It was straight in line; the ball was going to spin as well. I think if DRS was there at that time, it would have hit the stumps for sure. But that’s McGrath for you. Australia has produced many great players, but they are bad losers. They lost the match from a comfortable position. So it must have been hard for them,” said Harbhajan.
The Jalandhar-born stated that Australians were not satisfied throughout the 2001 series. Harbhajan said the problem with Aussies is that when they face the heat, they don’t feel happy and tend to express displeasure, but this is how the game goes.
“That is Australia for you. When they bowl, they feel everything is out. When they are facing it, they feel they are not out. They were not really happy about most of the decisions during the 2001 series. But this is how the game goes. During the 2008 series, when we went to Australia, we also faced a few bad decisions as well,” added the 39-year-old.
Harbhajan also spoke about a few fans’ point of view on Twitter who time and again discuss Adam Gilchrist’s dismissal during that Test and calls it unfair. The right-armer said that these things happen in cricket and one shouldn’t keep ‘crying about it’.
“These things happen in the field. We have to accept it as a player. We don’t need to keep on crying about it. We now see some people say on Twitter that Gilchrist was not out. So what if he was not out? How many times have I got him out? If not the first ball, I could have got him out on the second ball,” the offie added further.
The Kolkata Test is one of the most notable matches in Indian cricket history. The Sourav Ganguly-led side had registered an incredible 171-run victory after being enforced a follow-on by the Aussies. India were bundled out for 171 in the first innings.
However, then the cricket saw one of the greatest comebacks as the hosts managed to post a mammoth 657/7, thanks to outstanding knocks played by VVS Laxman (281) and Rahul Dravid (180). The pair stitched a 376-run partnership and guided their side to give Australia a 384 run target.
In response, the Steve Waugh-led team could only score 212 as Harbhajan demolished the Aussie batting order by claiming six wickets including a hat-trick in the second innings.
