Colombo: Harbhajan Singh, who made an astonishing comeback with 4 for 12 against England in the last group-stage match of the T20 World Cup, said that it had been a tough last one-year for him and making such an impact on the game in his first match after such long hiatus was possible only because the Almighty and the well wishes of his family and friends who stood by him in his struggling days.
“It's been a hard year. Being out of the side for so long was really tough. Wearing the blue colour and playing for India is everything to me. I don’t know what I would do if not playing for India. During the last one year I was out first because of injury and then was dropped. In the meantime, other boys were doing really well. So it was really difficult for me to make a comeback. For me it was an important game. Getting a wicket first or second ball gives you a lot of confidence,” said Harbhajan, adding that the man-of-the-match award was for his mom and those who have stuck with him in his bad days.
“In T20 cricket, it's important to just read the game. I have tried to cut down my run-up a bit. I was running in too fast and struggling to find my areas. So I was consciously coming in of a short run. This India shirt is everything for me,” said Harbhajan.
Meanwhile Indian skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni was in all praise for his boys and said that it was an efficient performance from all quarters. “It was an efficient performance. People might say we were slow for the first 15, but we were not over-aiming. We had five bowlers, we knew that,” said Dhoni, adding that selecting the team was difficult.
“We requested the seniors to rest so that we could pick the best XI. And we opened with Irfan because he is a gutsy player. He may not look pretty on the crease, but he responds to the call. Now we have got a problem of plenty with both the spinners doing well today. About Rohit, it is important if guys are responding to give them a few extra games. Yes, we have got difficult decisions to make. Not to forget that the players who missed out today have won a lot of games for India on their own," said Dhoni, mentioning that the team for games ahead will be selected on the basis of the conditions and oppositions.
Meanwhile, England captain Stuart Broad said that it was a poor performance on his team’s part. “Yeah it was poor. We were okay with India scoring 171, but India bowled really well. We weren't as efficient. We played across the line too much,” said Broad.
