‘Greg Chappell disrupted a solid team, don’t know what was his motive’: Harbhajan Singh recalls ‘lowest point’ of his career | Cricket - Hindustan Times
close_game
close_game

‘Greg Chappell disrupted a solid team, don’t know what was his motive’: Harbhajan Singh recalls ‘lowest point’ of his career

Hindustan Times, New Delhi | Byhindustantimes.com | Edited by Karan Prashant Saxena
Jun 15, 2020 12:29 PM IST

At the time, former Australia cricketer Greg Chappell was leading the Indian team as the head coach, and Harbhajan believes that the atmosphere of the team under Chappell was not right and the players did not trust each other.

Veteran India cricketer Harbhajan Singh believes the 2007 ODI World Cup was the lowest point of his career. India were eliminated from the tournament in the first round itself after losing to Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. At the time, former Australia cricketer Greg Chappell was leading the Indian team as the head coach, and Harbhajan believes that the atmosphere of the team under Chappell was not right and the players did not trust each other.

File image of Greg Chappell and Harbhajan Singh.(Getty Images)
File image of Greg Chappell and Harbhajan Singh.(Getty Images)

“When Greg Chappell came as the coach of our side, he disrupted the entire team. I don’t know what motive he came with. No one knows how to disrupt a solid team better than him. Only god knows what was his motive. The entire press was under him. He would make them write what he wanted, he used to do whatever he wanted,” he said in a video interview with former India cricketer Aakash Chopra on his Youtube chat show ‘Aakash Vani’.

Hindustan Times - your fastest source for breaking news! Read now.

Also read: ‘Virat Kohli wasn’t happy’: Former England opener recalls ‘funny joke’ during 2012 Test series against India

“The 2007 50-over World Cup has to be the lowest point of my cricketing career. I thought we were going through such a difficult time and I also thought that maybe it is not the right time to play for India. I felt wrong people were at the helm of Indian cricket.

“I felt these people have come to ruin Indian cricket. Who is Greg Chappell? Why is he doing such things? He was trying to divide and lead, he used to do such things. I don’t know what his motive was,” Harbhajan added.

The 39-year-old further said that the team that travelled to the West Indies in 2007 for the ODI World Cup had quality players. “When I look back at the team that travelled to the West Indies in 2007, it was such a great team. We were just not able to perform as no one was in the right frame of mind, no one trusted each other. When the team is not happy then the results do not go your way.

“That is what happened. Despite having such a strong team, we were out in the first round. We lost to Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, they were not that big teams, it was not like we lost to Australia or South Africa. Sri Lanka played final that year, but I would still think we were a team at par with them. That was the lowest point of my career,” he said.

Also read: Five Indians in Brad Hogg’s current ODI XI team, Jasprit Bumrah misses out

Harbhajan further went on to recall the World T20 win in 2007 in South Africa, and said that despite having a young set of players, the team was able to win the title because the atmosphere in the dressing room was a happy one.

“Despite that, we went on to win the 2007 T20I World Cup and everything changed. We got the limelight again, we started playing for India. Greg Chappell was gone. Our Indian coaches Lalchand Rajput, Venkatesh Prasad and Robin Singh - These people worked really hard with the team. The atmosphere had improved. The team started winning again.

Also read: ‘Needed to play twice our potential’: Javagal Srinath recalls India’s 2003 World Cup final loss

“A junior team went to South Africa, no one thought we could win. Rohit Sharma, Robin Uthappa, Joginder Sharma were new. Me, Yuvraj, Viru and Agarkar were the only ones who were experienced players. Rest of the team was fairly new. No one thought we could be the world champions, but we became world champions because the atmosphere was so good,” he said.

Stay updated with the latest Cricket News, IPL Live Scores, and get exclusive insights with the RR vs DC Live Score, IPL 2024 Schedule, match highlights, and more. Explore a comprehensive Cricket Schedule, track the race for the Purple Cap and Orange Cap in IPL 2024, check Virat Kohli performance and stay ahead with all the cricket-related updates on the Hindustan Times website and app.
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
Share this article
SHARE
Story Saved
Live Score
OPEN APP
Saved Articles
Following
My Reads
Sign out
New Delhi 0C
Thursday, March 28, 2024
Start 14 Days Free Trial Subscribe Now
Follow Us On