‘Would hate to face him’ – Gautam Gambhir has his say on Harbhajan vs Ashwin debate

Two of the greatest off-spinners to have represented India, Ravichandran Ashwin and Harbhajan Singh boast of stellar records at the international arena. With the two bowling greats possessing similar skill sets, comparisons are also drawn between the two. Interestingly, it was Ashwin only who replaced Harbhajan as Team India’s primary spinner across formats.

During the recently-concluded first Test against Sri Lanka in Mohali, Ashwin added another feather to his hat as he surpassed Kapil Dev’s tally of 434 Test scalps to become India’s second-most successful bowler in the longest format. While Anil Kumble tops the list with 619 scalps, Harbhajan, who retired from all formats of the game last year, is now holding the fourth position with 417 wickets.

Meanwhile, former Indian opener Gautam Gambhir is the latest to give his take on Ashwin vs Harbhajan debate. While he claimed Ashwin would trouble him more, the southpaw said Harbhajan was more delightful to watch. Notably, Gambhir has played a significant amount of cricket both with both off-spinners.

I would hate to face Ravichandran Ashwin: Gautam Gambhir

“As a batter, I would hate to face Ravichandran Ashwin, but I would love to watch Harbhajan Singh. This means, that as a left-hander, I would always feel that Ashwin could dismiss me, but as an analyst, then Harabhajan…he had that bounce, that doosra and could dip the ball,” Gambhir said on Star Sports.

“And Ashwin, for a left-hander or any other batter, he is much more difficult to face because he is far more accurate and difficult because of his speed variations. Harbhajan Singh was more beautiful to watch,” he added. Meanwhile, Ashwin now stands ninth in the list of the highest wicket-taker in Test matches.

Aged 35, the off-spinner is certainly in the latter stages of his career but his performances aren’t dipping. Ashwin took six wickets in the Mohali Test alongside slamming a crucial half-century. He’ll next be seen in action in the second and final Test of the series, which gets underway on March 12 in Bangalore. Notably, it will be a day-night affair and hence, bowlers will operate with the pink cherry.