New Delhi: On March 27 this year, Saransh Jain Posted photos and videos on Instagram, thanked the former India off-spinner Harbhajan Singh for the valuable lessons he learned during the five-day camp at the BCCI Center of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru.In the caption, Saransh mentioned a line that Harbhajan Singh said to her that touched her the most. It reads: “Kuch paane ke liye kuch khona nahi, kuch karna padta hai (To achieve something, you don’t have to lose something, you have to do something).” Saransh further wrote: “These are not just words. They feel good and stay with me.”Now, months later, the 33-year-old woman got her maiden call in India.“He is a humble man who knows what he has to do. I wish him all the best as this is a special moment for him, his family and everyone who supported him,” Harbhajan told TimesofIndia.com in an exclusive interview.Saransh, who has played a lot of First-Class cricket and has been a regular for Madhya Pradesh, has impressed the selectors with his consistency during the domestic grind and was recently rewarded with an India A call-up. In his outing for India A against Sri Lanka A, Saransh picked up seven wickets in two unofficial Tests. In the second match, he claimed six wickets and scored an unbeaten 70 in the first innings, paving the way for India’s 10-wicket victory.
Saransh Jain selected for India vs Sri Lanka test match.
“He has worked extremely hard and spent many years in domestic cricket, which, in many ways, is tougher than people realize. Bowling long spells of 40 or 50 overs in a match teaches you a lot. The more you bowl, the more you learn,” said Harbhajan, while praising Saransh’s domestic grind.Washington Sundar’s injury opens the door for Saransh. With Ravindra Jadeja, Manav Suthar and Kuldeep Yadav in the squad, Saransh is the fourth spinner but the lone off-spinner. If he goes on to make his debut, Saransh will become the first Indian player to debut after the age of 33 since Robin Singh in 1998.“At 33, he is still young for a spinner, but now he has the experience of bowling to some of the best spin players in domestic cricket. I am grateful that I got the chance to spend four or five days with him,” said Harbhajan, backing Saransh to do well.
Saransh Jain has an excellent act and keeps things simple. He didn’t try too many fancy variations. He has a lot of experience, an excellent seam position and great control
Harbhajan Singh
Over the years, Saransh’s flight, dip and long arm action have proved difficult for batters to pick. Those were exactly the traits that caught Harbhajan Singh’s attention during the specialist camp for off-spinners at the CoE.“The first thing I noticed was his action. He was very good in action and kept things simple. He didn’t try too many fancy variations. He has a lot of experience, an excellent seam position and great control. Those qualities make a big difference,” Harbhajan said.“Experience teaches you to trust your strengths and always stick to the right line and length. What impressed me the most was his attitude. His mindset was always about getting wickets. Today, many bowlers are focused on simply getting through their overs instead of thinking about getting rid of the batters. A bowler’s main job is to take wickets, not just have runs,” added Harbhajan, who has taken 417 wickets in 103 Tests for India.
Harbhajan Singh and Saransh Jain (Instagram)
The two-time World Cup winner also shared his conversation with the off-spinners during the camp.“In that camp, I told the boys that we, as spinners, always convince ourselves that nothing happens easily on the pitch. But the wicket does not change. It is up to us to adapt to the conditions, whether the surface is curved, flat, slow or flat. Every bowler must learn how to hit the wicket in front of him. Experience is the greatest teacher. I can guide you, but if you don’t experience the situations yourself, you can’t really learn,” he said.“If the pitch doesn’t give much help, you have to find other ways to create opportunities. You may have to change your field, stay patient and always bowl in one place.
As a bowler, you should dictate how the batter plays, not let the batter dictate the terms. When you make a batter hit your fielders, you know you are in control. The biggest difference I see now is that many bowlers don’t have the same hunger for wickets. Saransh has that instinct
Harbhajan Singh
“As a bowler, you have to dictate how the batter plays, not let the batter dictate the terms. When you make a batter hit your fielders, you know you are in control. The biggest difference I see now is that many bowlers don’t have the same hunger for wickets. Saransh has that instinct,” he added.Saransh is a late bloomer. Although he did his Ranji Trophy Debuting in 2014, it wasn’t until 2022 that he truly announced himself on the domestic stage. Having featured in just eight first-class matches in his first eight years, the off-spinner played a key role in Madhya Pradesh’s Ranji Trophy win, taking 13 wickets. Since then, he has only grown.
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In the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy season, he amassed 518 runs at an average of 57.55 and took 30 wickets at 20.43. That followed a stellar Duleep Trophy campaign for Central Zone, where he scored two half-centuries and claimed 16 wickets in just two matches to be named Player of the Series, guiding Central Zone to their first title in 11 years.Whether he gets the chance to make his India debut or not, Harbhajan Singh believes Saransh has the right skills to succeed at the international level.“He is not a batter who can bowl off-spin. He is an off-spinner who is hungry to take wickets and knows how to put a price on his wicket with the bat in his hands,” Harbhajan said.