Physio John Gloster attends to Harbhajan Singh on Sunday. Picture by Gautam Bose

Calcutta: Misbah-ul Haq and Kamran Akmal may have staged a dramatic recovery on Sunday but Harbhajan Singh feels India still have a good chance to wrap up the series at the Eden.

“Misbah and Akmal batted really well. They were not sure about the pace of the wicket to begin with, but once they got in, they batted really well.

“We were always in the game and still have a good chance to win this Test. It was just a matter of getting that one wicket. But credit goes to those two guys… They batted superbly. We have just to go out tomorrow (Monday) and get the remaining wickets quickly… We’ll then decide what to do,” the Team India off-spinner said after stumps on Day III.

“This match will surely produce a result,” he stressed.

“The first session tomorrow (Monday) is very important. We will look to take the remaining four wickets.”

Has the wicket deteriorated? “If so many runs have been scored, then obviously the wicket is very good,” the off-spinner quipped.

“These are the kind of tracks we are used to playing on… You should be able to bowl on all types of pitches. This is a good one for Test cricket… runs are being scored and if you bowl well you will get wickets too. I wish it had more pace and carry for the faster bowlers so that they would have got some encouragement to bowl as well.”

Harbhajan said India’s tactic was to stay positive. “We were always looking for wickets... Be positive… As you saw the wicket is quite good and a lot of runs have been scored on it… Is still being scored. We have the advantage of having runs on the board. All four bowlers were trying to bowl a good line and length and put the batsmen under pressure.”

He also felt that captain Anil Kumble handled the bowlers well. “Kumble handled the bowling changes quite well and according to the situation. He used all the bowlers quite well and his moves were really good.”

Which would he rate as his best delivery on Sunday? “My best delivery is yet to come,” he quipped.

Harbhajan was all praise for Misbah and Akmal.

“Akmal really batted well. I remember the century he scored in Mohali and it was a really good one… Also the one in Karachi. He got one in Lahore too but I don’t think it was special because anyone could have scored a century there. He is a good player… A quality player.”

Misbah, too, impressed Harbhajan.

“Misbah is batting really well. The wickets are slow but he is doing well. He is a good player of spin. He has not played much international cricket till now. But as he keeps playing, people will get to know his weaknesses. I think he has batted well in both the ODI series and the Tests. He is a quality player and let’s see how well he does in the long term.”

He also congratulated Muttiah Muralidharan for equalling Shane Warne’s record.

“Congratulations to Murali! Taking wickets is nothing new to him… You cannot call it a habit… It is more like a hunger for him… He just keeps on taking wickets. Hats off to him. He is a great bowler, great guy to be with. Congratulations to him and his team.”

Harbhajan said Murali, Shane Warne and Kumble were all his role models. “All three are my role models. They are my inspiration and it is a good thing that Murali and Kumble are still playing and doing well. We must look to emulate them.”