New Delhi, Oct 7 (IANS) Former India spinner Harbhajan Singh shared birthday wishes for his teammate and former left-arm pacer Zaheer Khan, who turned 47 on Tuesday, calling him ‘one of India’s finest fast bowlers.’
“Wishing a very happy birthday to one of India’s finest fast bowlers, @ImZaheer. Your incredible skill, sharp cricketing mind, and calm temperament on and off the field have inspired generations of players. May this year bring you good health, happiness, and continued success in every endeavour. Have a wonderful day celebrating with your loved ones,” Harbhajan wrote on X.
Zaheer represented India in 92 Tests, 200 ODIs, and 17 T20Is, picking up 311, 282, and 17 wickets in the three formats, respectively. While his red-ball career saw him pick up 11 five-wicket hauls, he finished his white-ball career with a lone five-wicket haul in the ODIs.
Zaheer, who had joined IPL franchise Lucknow Super Giants in August 2024, filling the vacancy left by Gautam Gambhir’s exit after IPL 2023, parted ways with the franchise after just one season this september.
Harbhajan, meanwhile, recently opened up on the IPL slapgate incident and bashed Lalit Modi for releasing the video. An 18-year-old video of the spinner slapping his former India teammate Sreesanth went viral when Lalit shared it on social media.
Harbhajan was critical of Lalit’s move and said that the latter might have been under the influence of alcohol when he put out the video, and that he failed to understand the motive behind pulling off such an act.
“Honestly, I didn’t understand why there was a need to make it public. I really don’t understand the motive behind that. I feel it would have been better if it hadn’t come out because there was no need for it. I don’t know what he was thinking when he released the video—maybe he was under the influence of alcohol or just messing around. If I were in their place, I wouldn’t have let any such video come out like that,” Harbhajan told IANS.
“Everyone thinks differently. What happened was wrong, and I have already apologised for it. What happened between me and Sreesanth at that time was not right. As a sportsman, I don’t think I should have done that. People learn from their mistakes, and if I had enough understanding back then, I wouldn’t have done it,” he added.
— IANS
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