India suffered a drubbing in the hands of hosts Sri Lanka by 63 runs in the first Test at Galle International Stadium last week. The tweakers from both the sides were instrumental in picking up the majority of wickets.
But unfortunately it was not the kind of figure that a veteran off-spinner like Harbhajan Singh would have wanted to see, as he could only manage to claim one wicket in the two innings and that too of Tharindu Kaushal, who bats lower down the order.
Former Indian spinner Venkatapathy Raju felt that Harbhajan has been trying "too hard" after he made his comeback against Bangladesh in June this year.
"He went through that rehabilitation phase while correcting his action. Then he was out of contention for a while and now when he has made a comeback, he is probably trying too hard. (But) There is nothing lacking on the experience front. He knows what to do in which condition," Raju said in an interview to PTI.
"But that's the problem, when you make a comeback and you are trying to prove yourself. You try to do something more and that sometimes doesn't work," he added.
Rangana Herath and Kaushal sunk the Indian batting order in the second innings of the first Test while the visitors were chasing a meagre total of 176 runs. India were firmly in control till the third day of the game and in a dramatic turn of events, the Lankans snatched a 63-run victory from the jaws of India.
Indian spinners could not capitalise on the situations they were exposed to. Dinesh Chandimal's counter attack unsettled the Indian spinners.
"The three-spinner theory works only when the batsmen get runs on board. When India went in with three spinners, there were batsmen like Sehwag who would put up runs in the board. A score of 400 always helps. Then you had bowlers who were all-rounders. This team is a young team, probably they will gain experience and get better," Raju said.
