I never thought I'd play 100 Tests: Harbhajan Singh

Harbhajan Singh who will become the 10th Indian to play 100 Tests when he takes the field in the first Test against Australia here today never thought he would play for so long for the country ldquoI remember playing my first game under Mohd Azharuddinrsquos captaincy It was in Bangalore I was 17 and I had no clue about what was going to happen I was just a little kid in the park I was starstruck by these players I never thought Irsquod play for India for this long and play 100 Test matches God has been really kind I would like to thank the Almighty for giving me this opportunityrdquo said Harbhajan on the eve of the match ldquoItrsquos a big game The previous 99 are gone Obviously a bit nervous but I am sure I will be fine I have faced these situations beforerdquo the offspinner addedu00a0 With 408 wickets from 99 Tests at an average of 3227 and a strikerate of 681 Harbhajan has been one of Indiarsquos most prolific bowlers even though he has been enduring a tough phase for some time ldquoI have gone through times when I was not doing well or when I was doing well and got too excited These things happen ldquoI am a bit nervous to start with but I will be fine Once I get away with 100 we will see what needs to be done to play another 50odd Probably I will have to work even harderrdquo he added Highs and lows Reflecting on the highs and lows Harbhajan said ldquoItrsquos been a journey with lots of ups and downs No one can always be at the top and no one will always be down You will have ups and down like normal guys doing routine things ldquoWhat Irsquove learnt from great players is to never give up That made this team successful These players showed us how to work hard ldquoIrsquom very lucky very proud that Irsquove played with all these greats like Sourav Ganguly Rahul Dravid because without their support I wouldnrsquot have achieved thisrdquo Harbhajanrsquos most significant milestones have come against Australia but the offie said he doesnrsquot understand the connection with the team from Down Under ldquoI donrsquot know if I have a special connection with Australia but itrsquos nice to see your name alongside greats like Sachin Tendulkar Sunny Gavaskar and all the greats who have played for India in 100 Test matchesrdquo Harbhajan saidu00a0 Harbhajanrsquos Top Five Australian encounters gtgt Chennai March 2001 Harbhajan claimed 15 wickets mdash his second successive Test tally of 10 or more scalps mdash as he guided India to a twowkt win in the match and a phenomenal 21 series victory His figures of 38261337 and 41520848 in both innings earned him the Man of the Match award Only Narendra Hirwani 16 wkts has more victims in a Test for India gtgt Kolkata March 2001 Harbhajan returned with figures of seven for 123 in the first innings and six for 73 in the second as he along with VVS Laxman and Rahul Dravid helped India to victory after being asked to followon mdash only the third such instance in Test cricket In the process he also registered the first ever Test hattrick for his country gtgt Bangalore October 2004 This was Bhajjirsquos third haul of 10 or more wickets against the Aussies But this time he failed to guide India to victory They lost by 217 runs He captured five for 146 in the first innings and six for 78 in the second gtgt Mumbai November 2004 In a lowscoring match Harbhajan played a vital role as the visitors chasing a target of 107 lost by 13 runs After going wicketless in the first innings he opened the bowling in the final innings and returned with figures of 1052295 He got the crucial wickets of Matthew Hayden Simon Katich and Adam Gilchrist before winding up the tail gtgt Nagpur November 2008 It was an allround performance from Harbhajan that helped India post a memorable 172run victory He scored an unbeaten 18 a vital 52 and then claimed seven wickets mdash including those of star batsmen Ricky Ponting Matthew Hayden and Shane Watson u00a0