Former India off-spinner Harbhajan Singh lauded KL Rahul for performing under pressure in the first Border-Gavaskar 2024-25 Test against Australia in Perth. He shared that while he is often criticized for his failures, the star batter proved he is a quality player. After registering scores of 0 & 12 in the first Test against New Zealand during the home series, Rahul was dropped from the squad for the next two matches.

He also struggled while representing India A against Australia A in the second unofficial Test in Melbourne also. With Rohit Sharma and Shubman Gill unavailable for the Perth Test, Rahul opened the innings and scored 26 & 77.

ALSO READ: “Shubman’s captaincy is very good” – Ravi Bishnoi on Shubman Gill

In an interview with PTI, Harbhajan said, “KL Rahul… we talk so much about him, that KL is not making runs, this is not happening for him or that is not happening but in the end, you see, if you give a (long) run to a player — he is a quality player, KL Rahul — and I am so happy for him. Bumrah is an amazing player, and of course, he has got a great mindset. I have been a huge supporter of Bumrah from Day One and he has got that very calm kind of personality.”

“He knows his game and he is one of those guys who is a very likeable person in the dressing room. He commands a lot of respect in the dressing room. So when such a person leads you from the front, the team obviously follows,” Harbhajan further added.

ALSO READ: Hardik Pandya shares happiness after winning back the love of fans

However, Team India dropped Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja for the Perth Test and included Washington Sundar. Speaking specifically about Ashwin (38), Harbhajan said that the team management is looking to prepare Sundar as his replacement.

He told PTI: “I think that’s what their long term plan is. Ashwin has done a phenomenal job playing for India in taking all those wickets in his career. But now that he is at that stage, at the age of 38, so that’s why they have kept Sundar with them (for) whenever Ashwin will retire. The team thinks that they have to prepare Washington, so I think they are working on the same path.”