‘She Sees Me As The Guy Who…’: Harbhajan Singh Reveals His Conversation With S Sreesanth’s Daughter On IPL 2008 ‘Slapgate’ Incident | Cricket News
Former Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh has opened up about the infamous Slapgate incident involving his former teammate S Sreesanth during the inaugural edition of Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2008. While admitting that he was completely at fault for the incident, Harbhajan said that if given a chance, he would remove that chapter from his life.
Notably, Harbhajan while playing for Mumbai Indians, slapped Kings XI Punjab pacer (now Punjab Kings)Sreesanth during a league match of the IPL 2008 season. The BCCI suspended Harbhajan for the remaining fixtures after that incident, which still remains one of the much-talked about events in the IPL history.
“One thing I’d want to change in my life is that incident with Sreesanth. I want to remove that incident from my career. That is the incident I would change from my list. What transpired was wrong, and I shouldn’t have done what I did. I apologised 200 times,” Harbhajan told Ravichandran Ashwin on his YouTube channel show Kutti Stories.
“What I felt so bad about was that even years after that incident, I have been apologising every opportunity or stage I get. It was a mistake. We all make mistakes, and we hope and try never to repeat such mistakes.
He was my teammate, and we were playing together. Yes, in that game we were opponents. But it shouldn’t have gone to the level where we behaved in such a manner. So yeah, that was my fault, and the only fault of his was that he provoked me – but that’s okay, actually. However, what I did was not okay. I said, ‘Sorry’,” he added.
The 45-year-old Singh further mentioned that that Slapgate incident affected him, particularly after a conversation with Sreesanth’s daughter.
“What hurt me even more, years later, was when I met his daughter. I was talking to her with a lot of love, and she said, ‘I don’t want to talk to you. You hit my father.’ My heart was shattered, and I was on the verge of tears,” former India spinner said.
“I kept asking myself – what kind of impression have I left on her? She must be thinking of me in a poor light, right? She sees me as the guy who hit her father. I felt so bad. I still apologise to his daughter, knowing I can’t undo what happened. I keep telling her, ‘If there’s anything I can do to make you feel better, or make you think I’m not that kind of person, please tell me.’
I just hope that when she grows up, she doesn’t see me in the same light. I hope she sees that her uncle is someone who will always be there for her and support her in any way he can. That’s why I want to remove that chapter,” he added.
During his decorated IPL career, Harbhajan played for three teams — Mumbai Indians (MI), Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) — and picked 150 wickets at an economy rate of 7.08 in 163 matches. He won four IPL titles as well.
