Harbhajan Singh, the veteran India off-spinner, won’t travel to the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Friday (August 21) with the rest of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) squad for Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020.
As per a report in Times of India, Harbhajan has decided not to travel to the UAE because of his mother’s illness. Bhajji, who had already skipped the five-day training camp for CSK at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai ahead of their visit to the Gulf nation, has informed the franchise about the developments.
The Turbanator will join the rest of the CSK squad in Dubai in two weeks. However, the other two CSK cricketers – Ravindra Jadeja and Shardul Thakur – who had also missed the training camp due to personal reasons, will join the CSK members squad in Chennai for a visit to Dubai.
Harbhajan has been an essential part of the Chennai franchise. In 2018, CSK had roped him for his base price of INR 2 crores.
When it comes to the performances in the cash-rich league, Harbhajan has so far played 160 games and has taken 150 wickets – third highest in the history of IPL.
Earlier, bowling coach of the ‘Yellow Army’, Laxmipathy Balaji, had said that the senior members of the team wouldn’t have any issues getting back in the momentum despite the long break.
“I don’t think it’s going to be that difficult, because all your life you have played this sport. So many years of understanding will come in handy to get back to your best. The experience will definitely be important. It has been proven in big tournaments like IPL.
“Dhoni is always a process backing leader. There is no short cut in his leadership, but he is someone who believes in opportunity and exposure rather than cutting and chopping,” Balaji had said.
