The Eden Gardens is not just another port of call for the Sardar of Spin, it was the turning point of his career. ‘‘That’s where my life changed,’’ says Harbhajan Singh. But for the Test against Australia in the March of 2001, Harbhajan may have been consigned to spend the rest of his career on the domestic circuit. Today he can look back at that dramatic Test and admit that: ‘‘I was very close to the brink, I know it could have been my last Test for India.’’Such was the intensity of the drama at the Eden Gardens in that Test against the ‘invincible’ Aussies that Harbhajan or for that matter any of the Indians need not be reminded of the course of the match. Day One saw Harbhajan claim a hat-trick and by the next day, he had finished with seven wickets in his kitty. However, India’s batting slump in the first innings meant that they had to bat all over again to save the match. But this time VVS Laxman played the knock of his career as he and Rahul Dravid led the fightback. There was still a glimmer of hope of saving the match though not even a remote chance of winning. Australia walked into bat almost sure to stretch their winning record when against all odds came Harbhajan’s match-winning haul—six pieces in the second innings; the off-spinner was reborn as ‘The Turbanator’.As Kolkata’s hallowed turf hosts another Test on Wednesday, this time against the West Indies, Harbhajan can smell the pressure awaiting him. ‘‘For a moment, expect me to be nervous; those very people who saw the Test against Australia will be wishing for a repeat performance,’’ he says. ‘‘It won’t be easy as miracles don’t happen every day.’’Then, he goes on. ‘‘Actually, another win is not ruled out as our team will go in for a 3-0 series win,’’ which seems likely as the Caribbeans lost the first two Test by huge margins. However, Harbhajan has a personal ambition too for his fans as he says, ‘‘I have 15 wickets in the series so far and if I bowl well this week, I could give the fans at the Eden Gardens something to cherish for.’’The offie has steadily risen to the top of the Indian bowling charts. Home or away, he is the trusted one of his skipper Saurav Ganguly, having picked up more than 100 Test wickets in the year-and-half since that series against Australia. ‘‘The Australian series gave me the confidence to believe in my abilities. And a spinner needs confidence more than anything,’’ he says. The current form of the team shows in his remark that ‘‘now, our bowling is all about team effort’’.However, it is on home pitches that Harbhajan knows his geometry best: the loop and the dip, the curve, how much it needs to turn and when to bowl the away-spinner. In the last 10 Tests at home, against teams which include Australia, England, Zimbabwe and the West Indies, he has returned with a five-wicket haul eight times, devastating by any standard. Even Anil Kumble hasn’t been able to keep up pace with his ‘junior’ partner. Outside India, miracles haven’t occurred but Harbhajan’s stats reveal that during this period, he had just one mediocre series: in Sri Lanka. The only Test he played at Port Elizabeth in South Africa fetched him far worse returns than the way he had bowled on a pitch not conducive to spin bowling.However, his performances in the West Indies and England this year were encouraging. ‘‘On those pitches, I try to bowl slightly shorter than the drivable length and also vary my pace. One cannot attack there as much as in India so one has to be patient with the wickets,’’ he says, brushing aside criticism. For the records, in the last one year, India have lost two Tests abroad when Harbhajan wasn’t playing in the team. The offie, not yet 23, has been around for close to five years in international cricket. He feels, ‘‘Milestones are important as they indicate how much you have improved.’’ Certainly, whenever he looks back at how far he has come, the Eden Gardens will be his starting point.
