Jealousy much? Harbhajan Singh not happy with Ravi Ashwin and Washington Sundar's inclusion in India ODI squad

Published at :September 19, 2023 at 11:12 PM

Modified at :December 13, 2023 at 1:01 PM

(Courtesy : Twitter/ICC)

Former Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh not happy with recall of Ashwin in ODIs.

Former Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh has expressed his belief that the BCCI and the Indian team management are making a significant mistake by including both Ravi Ashwin and Washington Sundar, both of whom are off-spin all-rounders, in the squad for the upcoming three-match ODI series against Australia. This series is set to kick off on September 22.

Harbhajan, who has been consistently expressing his view on the necessity of including an off-spinner in the squad, has stated that it was unnecessary to bring in two off-spinners for the Indian team in the series against Australia.

He argued that since Ravindra Jadeja and Kuldeep Yadav already have secured spots in the lineup, there is no valid reason to have two off-spinners in the ODI series against Australia.

"First Washington Sundar, who wasn't in the original Asia Cup squad, was called there. After that, a second player has been added for this series and that is R Ashwin. So somewhere or the other Team India is searching for off-spinners," Harbhajan said on his YouTube channel.

"They have probably realized their mistake that they haven't picked an off-spinner in the team and that our bowlers can get into trouble if a lot of left-handers come in front of them. Why unnecessarily go through all this? It is beyond my understanding or they are going to make another mistake to rectify their earlier mistake," he added.

"You will never pick three spinners in the team. You will choose two at the most. Ravindra Jadeja is definitely going to play, no matter how many left-handers are there in front of you, and the other spinner will be Kuldeep Yadav. No one can take his place as of now," he concluded.

The clash between India and Australia is scheduled for three ODIs on September 22 in Mohali, September 24 in Indore, and September 27 in Rajkot. This series marks the last bilateral assignment for both teams before the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 gets underway on October 5.