"Need to play as team": Harbhajan Singh explains why India haven't won an ICC trophy since 2013

Harbhajan Singh feels that the Indian team doesn't play as a team in ICC tournaments.

India have struggled to win an ICC trophy since 2013. The last time India lifted an ICC trophy was way back in 2013 when MS Dhoni-led side defeated England in the final to lift the trophy. Since then, they have qualified for the knock-outs but failed to clinch the trophy.

Ahead of the 2023 World Cup, when asked why India haven't won any trophy since 2013, former India spinner Harbhajan Singh said in an interaction with News24 Sports, “I don't know, it's very difficult for me to say what we had and they don't. I believe players who play for the country, in whichever era they might be playing, their only motive is to play well and win for the nation."

He also added that the ability to absorb pressure is seen only in one or two players. “We played till the semi-finals in 2015 and 2019, the ICC trophy didn't come. Maybe the ability to punch back after absorbing the pressure has probably been seen in only one or two players. You need to play big tournaments as a team," he added.

When the team plays as a unit, they can produce bigger results: Harbhajan Singh

Harbhajan Singh added that the team cannot rely only on Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Hardik Pandya for winning the matches and everyone has to do their bit. “You have Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya - they are big players but along with these three players, the rest of the eight to ten players and the team management, everyone has to walk together with the same motive,” Harbhajan added.

He also spoke about the importance of small moments in the game, which could end up having a bigger impact on the result. “The small-small things like saving a single or a brilliant run-out, all those are also huge things. So when the team plays as a unit, they can produce bigger results and that is what probably our team did better. Maybe they are much better than our team talent-wise,” he concluded.