Captain Virat Kohli to Harbhajan Singh: 'Help us win Test matches'

Harare, July 20: Veteran off-spinner Harbhajan Singh, who made a comeback to the Indian team last month, is set to be a part of the Test team for a long time going by what captain Virat Kohli has told him.

To many, Harbhajan's return to Test cricket was a surprise. He was picked to play against Bangladesh in the from June 10. The logic given by the selectors was that Bangladesh had a lot of left-handers.

Both Harbhajan and R Ashwin featured in the Playing XI as the rain-hit match ended in a draw. Ashwin took 5 wickets while Harbhajan had 3.

Speaking to BCCI's website, 35-year-old Harbhajan recalled the day he walked into the dressing room after a gap of over 2 years and saw new faces.

Harbhajan had not played a Test since March 2013 and got his chance only in June 2015 against Bangladesh.

"When I walked into the dressing room and looked around, there were all new faces. It felt good to know that with so many new guys in the team, I was still around," Harbhajan told bcci.tv last night (July 19) in Harare where he was with the national team.

The 102-Test spinner revealed how Kohli wanted him to be a part of the team and help them win. "We had a briefing in the dressing room where Virat addressed the team and mentioned me. He said, 'We are looking for you to come and help us get those 20 wickets. We want you to be a part of us for this season and help us win Test matches because that is our goal - to win every Test match we play. We want you to help the other bowlers get into the frame of mind of picking wickets with your experience and skills'.

"Ravi (Shastri) bhai too was full of words and that gave me a lot of confidence. It made me feel wanted. After that it was all back to normal, like it was two years back," Harbhajan said.

Going by what Harbhajan has said, he is set to feature in India's Test squad for next month's 3-match series against Sri Lanka.

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