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Watch: Ex-India cricketer Harbhajan Singh's gesture towards Pakistani fan wins hearts online

In a video, Harbhajan Singh is seen walking up to a wheelchair-bound Pakistani fan and signing a ball for him

Published: Wed 14 Jun 2023, 4:00 PM

Updated: Fri 16 Jun 2023, 1:56 PM

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Photo: Twitter

Photo: Twitter

While the action of the World Test Championship (WTC) final was unfolding at the Oval, legendary India spinner Harbhajan Singh’s heart-warming gesture towards a fan won a million hearts online. The World Cup-winning bowler was seen giving an autograph to a Pakistani fan, a person of determination.

In the video, Harbhajan Singh is seen walking up to the Pakistani fan who is sitting on a wheelchair behind the boundary line. The former India cricketer signs a ball for him. A few seconds later, when a person asks, “Who is he [Harbhajan Singh] friends with?”, the fan, with a wide smile on his face, replies, “He is Shoaib Akhtar’s friend.” The clip ends with Harbhajan Singh nodding his head and acknowledging the fan’s reaction.


Needless to say Harbhajan Singh’s act was praised by fans on social media. Sharing the heart-warming footage, one person commented, “My respect for Harbhajan Singh just went on to another level.”

“This is what we want from our idol. Gratitude,” commented another user.

A few branded Harbhajan Singh as a “cricket ambassador.”

Harbhajan Singh’s bonding with Pakistan is not something new. The former India cricketer is known to have a cordial relationship with former Pakistan players like Shahid Afridi and Shoaib Akhtar. Akhtar and Harbhajan were seen having a face-off during this year’s Legends League Cricket.

A member of India’s two World Cup-winning squads, Harbhajan Singh retired from all forms of cricket in December 2021. The off spinner played 103 Tests, 236 ODIs and 28 T20Is for the Indian cricket team. Harbhajan capped off his Test career after picking up 417 wickets. In ODIs, he has 269 wickets. In T20Is, he managed to claim 25 wickets. He also played a key role with the bat, having scored 3569 runs across all three formats of the game in international cricket.

Following his retirement, Harbhajan Singh decided to venture into politics. The 42-year-old joined Aam Aadmi Party and he is currently serving as a Member of Parliament (MP) in Rajya Sabha. Apart from handling political duties, Harbhajan is often seen in the commentary box as well. Previously, he had said that the Indian batting unit will not face much trouble during the WTC final against Australia.

"The Oval is perhaps the best pitch to bat on in England, and it will be better to bat on as the game goes on. I don't think India will have any difficulties batting on this wicket. Gill and Kohli are in good form, the weather has opened up, and there is not much cloud cover as well," Harbhajan Singh had said while speaking on his YouTube channel.

But Team India batters did not have a good outing on the second day of the WTC summit battle. The Rohit Sharma-led side ended the second day’s play at 151/5.



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