'Harbhajan speaks out against 'superstar culture' in Team India following Rahul Dravid incident, urges BCCI to address issue'

India's cricket season in 2024/25 ended on a sour note as they suffered a defeat in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, marking the first time in ten years that they had lost this prestigious trophy. This loss was especially disappointing considering the preceding events of the season: a rare ODI series loss to Sri Lanka, and a crushing defeat on home soil by New Zealand. In the wake of such poor performances, former spinner Harbhajan Singh has called on the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) to address the "superstar culture" prevalent in Indian cricket.

All the defeats have comes since Gautam Gambhir took over as head coach, with previous incumbent Rahul Dravid ending his time at the helm by winning the 2024 T20 World Cup. "In the past six months, we lost to Sri Lanka, a series whitewash against New Zealand and now a 3-1 defeat in Australia. Everything was fine till Rahul Dravid was there. India won the World Cup, and everything was fine. But what happened suddenly?" Harbhajan Singh said on his YouTube channel.

A key characteristic of India's recent woes in Test cricket has been the poor form of their top-order batters, especially captain Rohit Sharma and former captain Virat Kohli. Rohit ended up dropping himself for the last Test against Australia. Harbhajan said that players have to be given a spot in the Indian team on the basis of their form and not their past achievements.

"Every player has a reputation. If this is the thing, then add Kapil Dev, Anil Kumble or those who have been India's biggest match-winners. BCCI and selectors should take hold. India should leave behind the superstar attitude," he said.

"Abhimanyu Easwaran was taken on tour, but he didn't play. He can become a player for India if he is given the opportunity. Sarfaraz is the same case. Now, the England tour lies ahead. The player who performs should go there. You should not pick players on reputation," he added.

India's forgettable run after winning the T20 World Cup

India lost the series to Australia 3-1 in a result that is a fair reflection of how the series went. While the visitors pushed the hosts throughout the series, they were behind in almost all the matches barring the first one in Perth, which they won by 295 runs.

The series defeat follows a stunning 3-0 whitewash at home at the hands of New Zealand, which ended a record run 18 consecutive series wins at home. Before that, India had also lost a bilateral ODI series to Sri Lanka for the first time since 1997.

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