Bhajji one of the most difficult bowlers to face: Clarke

By Rahul Bajaj
for Cricketain.com

Published: February 15, 2010

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Melbourne: Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh has been struggling for form for quite a while now but Australian vice-captain Michael Clarke still considers him one of the most difficult bowlers to face in international cricket.

“Harbhajan is a great competitor who loves playing and bowling against Australia. Not only does Harbhajan spin the ball a long way, he gets more bounce than any other spinner I have faced,” Clarke told Fox Sports.

In fact, Clarke rated Harbhajan third in the World’s best spin bowlers, alongside Aussie legend Shane Warne and Sri Lankan Muttiah Muralitharan. “All you have to do is look at Murali’s record. Apart from Shane Warne, he is the best spinner in the world,” he said.

Clarke’s list of top five international bowlers also included England’s talismanic all-rounder Andrew Flintoff and South African speedster Dale Steyn, who currently tops the ICC rankings.

“Freddie is the perfect illustration of statistics not always supporting the ability and class of a bowler. Freddie was quick, real quick, and moved the ball. His two greatest strengths were his speed and accuracy. Freddie held his speed for long periods of time and maintained a very accurate line. The spell I faced at the Lords Test in 2009 is the toughest and best spell of bowling I have faced in cricket,” Clarke said.

“Dale has a lot of similarities to Brett Lee. Great pace (in the 150kmh range), and swings the ball away from the right-hander. His seven wickets in India during the week prove that, in all conditions, his class shines,” he added.

Clarke also spoke highly of retired England paceman Stephen Harmison, who had caused a lot of problems for the Australians in the 2005 Ashes which England won. “I have always rated Stephen very highly. I found it hard to believe that he was left out of England’s team for the first Ashes Test last year. He releases the ball from a very high point and I have always found him very hard to go forward to. He bowls in the mid-to-high 140kmh range and, as I found out in 2005, he has a wonderful slower ball,” he said.

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