Former Indian cricketer and current BCCI President, Sourav Ganguly, congratulated off-spinner, Harbhajan Singh, on his 23-year-long illustrious career as the latter announced his retirement from all forms of cricket on Friday.
Harbhajan performed his best under the captaincy of Ganguly and was also one of the key components of India’s 2007 T20 World Cup-winning squad and the 2011 ODI World Cup-winning squad, both under MS Dhoni.
“I congratulate Harbhajan Singh on a remarkable career. He has faced several challenges in his life, but Bhajji is not the one to give up. He has overcome many hurdles and put many setbacks behind him to rise every time. What inspired me the most about him was his hunger to perform.“
“His strength was his guts and courage. He was always very passionate, and his immense self-belief meant he never shied away from a fight. He also kept the dressing room atmosphere light and that is something really important,” Ganguly said in an official BCCI statement.
He was a captain’s delight – Sourav Ganguly
Known for being a fierce competitor on the field, Harbhajan was one of the trump cards during India’s famous Test series win against Australia back in 2001. He took 32 wickets in the Test series which remains the highest number of wickets taken by an Indian in a 3-match series.
“His first full Test series against Australia in 2001 is the greatest that I have seen where one bowler single-handedly won the series. He was a captain’s delight. As a bowler, he hated putting fielders in the deep. Bhajji has been an absolute match-winner. He should be proud of what he has achieved. I want to tell him that the new innings in his life will be as exciting,” Ganguly added.
Harbhajan finished his career having played 103 Tests and 236 ODIs where he took 417 and 269 wickets respectively. He also played for three franchises – Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings, and Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL.