Harbhajan Singh

Full Name: Harbhajan Singh

Born: 3rd July 1980, Jullundur (now Jalandhar), Punjab, India

Batting: Right-hand batsman

Bowling: Right-arm off-break

The pillar of India's spin attack, Harbhajan Singh alias 'Bhajji' has baffled the best of international batsmen with his guile and chutzpah. Over the years, Harbhajan has defied controversies and storms, only to rise to the occasion with a bagful of wickets for both India and the Mumbai Indians.

The wild child of Indian cricket, Harbhajan exploded on to the scene as a teenager and had a somewhat unfortunate start to his career when he was reported for a suspect action just months after his debut in 1998. He underwent extensive action remodelling and coaching in England, and his action was cleared by Fred Titmus. He returned to knock the Australians off their feet in the epic series of 2001. His hat-trick in the first innings was one of the turning points of the series in which he claimed 32 wickets. He also became the first-ever Indian bowler to claim a hat-trick during the infamous Kolkata Test.

The 'doosra', an Urdu term for a ball that turns away from a right-hander, as opposed to a conventional off-spinner which turns towards the batsman, has been one of Harbhajan's primary weapons in the years gone by. However, his most dangerous delivery remains the one that hurries on to the batsman with awkward bounce and sharp spin, a delivery most seen in Indian conditions.

Harbhajan has emerged as one the most economic bowlers in contemporary limited overs cricket. In a career that has spanned over 200 one-dayers, the 29-year old has maintained a miserly economy rate of 4.3, and that too in the age of attacking batsmen, flat pitches and lightning fast outfields.

Ceaselessly wearing his heart on his sleeves, the wily bowler crossed the 350-wicket mark in Tests recently, and was fittingly conferred with the Padma Shri, India's fourth highest civilian honour. Among all off spinners to have played the game, Harbhajan is the second highest wicket-taker in Tests, behind Muttiah Muralitharan of Sri Lanka. He is the third-highest Test wicket-taker among all Indians.

Test Career Batting and Fielding (1997/98-2009/10)

	M	I	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	100	50	SRate	Ct
India	83	114	20	1584	66	16.85	0	7	64.67	40

Test Career Bowling (1997/98-2009/10)

	Balls	Mdns	Runs	Wkts	BB	Ave	5wI	10wM	SRate	Econ
India	23401	737	10985	355	8-84	30.94	24	5	65.91	2.81

First-Class Career Batting and Fielding (1997/98-2009/10)

	M	I	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	100	50	Ct
Overall	147	195	37	2992	84	18.93	0	11	73

First-Class Career Bowling (1997/98-2009/10)

	Balls	Mdns	Runs	Wkts	BB	Ave	5wI	10wM	SRate	Econ
Overall	37340	1267	17506	632	8-84	27.69	38	7	59.08	2.81

One-Day International Career Batting and Fielding (1997/98-2009/10)

	M	I	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	100	50	SRate	Ct
India	207	108	28	1037	49	12.96	0	0	81.20	59
Asian Cricket Council XI	2	2	0	24	20	12.00	0	0	100.00	0
Overall	209	110	28	1061	49	12.93	0	0	81.55	59

One-Day International Career Bowling (1997/98-2009/10)

	Balls	Mdns	Runs	Wkts	BB	Ave	4wI	5wI	SRate	Econ
India	10811	77	7739	235	5-31	32.93	2	3	46.00	4.29
Asian Cricket Council XI	120	0	101	4	3-48	25.25	0	0	30.00	5.05
Overall	10931	77	7840	239	5-31	32.80	2	3	45.73	4.30

List A Career Batting and Fielding (1997/98-2009/10)

	M	I	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	100	50	Ct
Overall	259	141	36	1403	49	13.36	0	0	78

List A Career Bowling (1997/98-2009/10)

	Balls	Mdns	Runs	Wkts	BB	Ave	4wI	5wI	SRate	Econ
Overall	13423	98	9552	307	5-31	31.11	4	3	43.72	4.26

International Twenty20 Career Batting and Fielding (2006/07-2009)

	M	I	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	100	50	SRate	Ct
India	17	6	1	57	21	12.40	0	0	105.55	5

International Twenty20 Career Bowling (2006/07-2009)

	Balls	Mdns	Runs	Wkts	BB	Ave	4wI	5wI	SRate	Econ
India	360	1	393	16	3-30	24.56	0	0	22.50	6.55

Twenty20 Career Batting and Fielding (2005-2009)

	M	I	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	100	50	SRate	Ct
Overall	46	26	6	254	31*	12.70	0	0	135.82	13

Twenty20 Career Bowling (2005-2009)

	Balls	Mdns	Runs	Wkts	BB	Ave	4wI	5wI	SRate	Econ
Overall	918	1	974	41	4-17	23.75	1	0	22.39	6.36

Youth One-Day International Career Batting and Fielding (1995/96-1997/98)

	M	I	NO	Runs	HS	Ave	100	50	Ct
India Under-19s	7	4	2	10	4	5.00	0	0	0

Youth One-Day International Career Bowling (1995/96-1997/98)

	Balls	Mdns	Runs	Wkts	BB	Ave	4wI	5wI	SRate	Econ
India Under-19s	336	8	188	9	3-5	20.80	0	0	37.33	3.35