‘I have a lot more cricket left in me'

Harbhajan Singh will not want the moment to fly away. Emotions swirled around as the off-spinner celebrated his 400th Test scalp at the Windsor Park on Thursday. The last few months have been difficult for the off-spinner. The wickets were hard to come by.

But then, he always sees a ray of light in darkness.

Aggressive character

Like him or loath him, you cannot deny the fight in the man. He can still pick up wickets that matter, counter-attack the bowling with the bat when the chips are down and field with tigerish resolve.

He is only the fourth spinner — giants Muttiah Muralitharan, Shane Warne and Anil Kumble being the others — to reach the 400-wicket mark.

He is the 11th bowler in Test history and the first off-spinner from India to achieve the feat.

In his 96th Test, the 31-year-old Harbhajan now has 400 wickets at 31.80 with 25 five-wicket innings and five 10-wicket match hauls. Controversies have dogged his career — for his on-field spats or when his bowling action came under the ICC scanner — but he has kept the fire burning. A Test career that began in 1997-98 endures.

Better home record

His home record — 258 scalps in 52 Tests at 24.58 — is better than his away numbers of 142 wickets in 43 Tests and an innings at 37.92.

In the run-up to 400 Test wickets, Harbhajan's best years have been 2001 (60 wickets), 2002 (63) and 2008 (63).

Even during a phase when he was thought to be struggling, Harbhajan's 15 wickets in three Tests at 29.60 played a key role in India levelling the three-Test series in South Africa 1-1 last year.

“I have been through ups and downs in a 13-year career. I am honoured to reach the 400-wicket mark and join such great names,” said a relaxed Harbhajan.

He spoke about wanting to give up the game after his father's death. “I was shattered. There was nothing left for me,” he said. It was Harbhajan's family which persuaded him to stay with cricket.

Harbhajan dwelt on his legendary spin partner Anil Kumble. “Anil bhai has always been there for me. He is not only a great bowler but a great human being. I enjoyed bowling with him; he used to create so much pressure from the other end. We complemented each other very well.”

He remembered the contribution of his India captains over the years, Mohammed Azharuddin, Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly, Rahul Dravid and now Mahendra Singh Dhoni. It was under Ganguly's leadership that his career blossomed.

Doosra helps

The champion off-spinner did speak about the much-maligned doosra. “These are days when you just cannot bowl line and length.

“The batsmen play a lot of strokes and you need to develop your variations. The doosra has fetched me a lot of wickets.”

Asked about the finest batsmen he has bowled to, Harbhajan's list included Aussie great Ricky Ponting's name. “I may have got him several times but he is a top-notch player. One of the greatest I have bowled to.”

Harbhajan, who shares a special bond with Tendulkar, revealed the maestro had actually taught him to bowl the slider. “It has been a very handy delivery for me,” he said.

Thanks catchers

The ace spinner did not forget to mention the role of close-in catchers Shiv Sundar Das, Sadagopan Ramesh, Akash Chopra, Cheteshwar Pujara and Rahul Dravid in his success.

“Dravid has taken more than 50 catches off my bowling. I hope he takes a lot more. Ramesh took a blinder to enable me achieve the hat-trick against Australia at Eden Gardens,” he said.

Harbhajan believed the 400-wicket mark would give him confidence and momentum ahead of India's Test series in England.

“I have a lot more cricket left in me,” he said with typical confidence.