Harbhajan shows his wiles

This week's copy of the Spin shows us how Harbhajan Singh has earned a reputation as a trickster and magician, and it has nothing to do with his bowling:

The road from Ranchi airport to Jamshedpur is long, tedious and contains more holes than one of the Spin's more cogent arguments. Mosquitoes keep you company en route and the honking of the driver's horn skilfully ensures against a quick nap. The heat is unbearable and the terrain reminiscent of one of the desert scenes in Star Wars. And it all takes three hours. If you could fly, you would. The journalists, of course, had no such luxury, which might have been punishment for accusing England of overusing the sweep shot at Delhi. But the England team - with the exception of the backroom staff and Jimmy Anderson - transferred straight from the charter flight from Guwahati onto a smaller plane that headed direct for Jamshedpur.

The Indians, meanwhile, had to rough it on the road. All, that is, except for Harbhajan Singh, who clearly knows which side his naan is buttered. The Spin smelt a rat the moment our flight touched down at Ranchi. Showing a turn of pace normally reserved for caught-and-bowled chances, Harbhajan sprinted down the aisle to grab his bag from an overhead locker, then legged it from the plane in the direction of ... the England aircraft! Yes, while the rest of his team-mates were wearily preparing themselves for the non-ride of a lifetime, Harbhajan had decided to take the pitch out of the equation by flying with the opposition.

Ever since Sourav Ganguly commandeered the Indian team bus to take him and his personal entourage from Napier airport to the team hotel (minus, of course, the team), the Spin has always had a healthy regard for Indians who take unilateral decisions on the matter of transport. But the team management were not quite so impressed. The Indians seemed unaware that Harbhajan had left them to be with his mates in the England team, while the English management were simply bemused. As for the journalists, by the time their luggage had failed to appear 90 minutes after landing, a case of airport-rage was on the cards. Next time Harbhajan looks twitchy, the Spin is going after him.