"You need to play big tournaments as a team" - Harbhajan Singh on why India haven't won an ICC event since 2013
Harbhajan Singh feels Team India's failure to play as a unit has cost them the title in recent International Cricket Council (ICC) events.
The Men in Blue haven't won a global event since the 2013 Champions Trophy. They will hope to end their 10-year wait for an ICC trophy at the ODI World Cup to be played at home later this year.
During an interaction with News24 Sports, Harbhajan was asked what was the mantra their 2007 T20 and 2011 ODI World Cup-winning sides had which the Indian team haven't had since 2013, to which he responded:
"I don't know, it's very difficult for me to say what we had and they don't. I believe players who play for the country, in whichever era they might be playing, their only motive is to play well and win for the nation."
The former Indian spinner added:
"We played till the semi-finals in 2015 and 2019, the ICC trophy didn't come. Maybe the ability to punch back after absorbing the pressure has probably been seen in only one or two players. You need to play big tournaments as a team."
In the limited-overs formats, India have reached the final or semi-final of a plethora of ICC events since 2013 but have failed to bag the trophy. They have also finished as the runners-up in the two World Test Championship cycles that have been played.
"Everyone has to walk together with the same motive" - Harbhajan Singh on the lack of support for the top players
Harbhajan Singh feels top players like Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya need support from other teammates for India to go all the way. He elaborated:
"You have Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma and Hardik Pandya - they are big players but along with these three players, the rest of the eight to ten players and the team management, everyone has to walk together with the same motive."
The cricketer-turned-commentator added that the sides he was a part of probably gelled better as a unit:
"The small-small things like saving a single or a brilliant run-out, all those are also huge things. So when the team plays as a unit, they can produce bigger results and that is what probably our team did better. Maybe they are much better than our team talent-wise."
Harbhajan concluded by hoping that India win the upcoming World Cup and that they play as a team and not rely on a few individuals trying to win games with their brilliance. He acknowledged that there will be a lot of expectations and pressure but added that's what they play and train for.