"Gary Kirsten Had Set Up A Rule...": Harbhajan Singh Shares Untold Story From Cricket World Cup 2011

Former Indian cricket team spinner Harbhajan Singh recalled that during the 2011 Cricket World Cup, the then-coach Gary Kirsten made it a rule that the players were not allowed to read newspapers. In a recent interaction, Harbhajan pointed out that any bad performance from a cricketer results in massive criticism on social media and that can affect them mentally. India went on to win the Cricket World Cup title in 2011 following several impressive performances and a memorable win over Sri Lanka in the final.

“Those times (2011) were different. You could get away by not reading newspapers. Now, everything is there on social media. Gary Kirsten had set up a rule and asked us not to read newspapers. If you don't perform well on a particular day, you will see what people will do on social media. I would advise players to stay away from social media. Don't see your phones for the next two months,” he told India Today.

Earlier, Harbhajan that Ravichandran Ashwin is one of the top bowling choices for the Rohit Sharma-led side right now and the team management should consider playing him in the Cricket World Cup 2023.

The inclusion of Ashwin in the World Cup squad was met with varied reactions from fans and experts after he made a decent comeback in the ODI series against Australia where he took four wickets in two matches.

Ashwin replaced the injured Axar Patel in the final Cricket World Cup squad after he was ruled out following the injury he picked up during Asia Cup 2023.

“People are realising that skill is more important. It's not like an off-spinner shouldn't bowl to right-handers. Even I mentioned that Ashwin should play if the opposition has more left-handers, but that is what the management thinks. But if I was captain