Harbhajan Singh over the years: The chequered career in pictures

Turbulent times after World T20 triumph

A 27-year-old Harbhajan was one of the seniors in the young Indian team that won the 2007 World T20

He returned to the team after Greg Chappell’s departure, first for the triumphant World T20 in 2007, which ultimately opened the gates for his recall in all three formats. The travel to Australia in 2007 turned out to be unexpectedly controversial.

He was involved in an altercation with Andrew Symonds in Sydney, one which saw him being accused of racial abuse. The acrimonious series became all the more controversial as poor umpiring decisions and unfair play clouded the second half of the series, one which the Indian team almost walked off from.

The Harbhajan-Symonds ‘Monkeygate’ garnered extensive media coverage

He was signed up by the Mumbai Indians in the inaugural IPL season in 2008 and has continued to play for them over the course of the next ten years. The alleged slap that he gave to Kings XI Punjab pacer Sreesanth midway through the tournament snowballed into a big issue when he was banned for the remainder of the season.