Indian cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar openly backed Harshit Rana after his commendable show in Sydney, as he slammed Kris Srikkanth for unnecessary criticism of a player who was not even handed many opportunities to prove himself until then.
Harshit Rana’s inclusion in the Indian team across all three formats of the game has been posing severe doubt over the credibility of the selection committee, and the former selector Kris Srikkanth was among the most well-known names to have voiced his disgust over the inclusion of the KKR pacer.
Harshit Rana hits back at critics with stunning show in Sydney
Harshit Rana remained a constant part of the Indian attack over the three matches in their tour to Australia, and he didn’t disappoint his coach this time. Having played in all 3 games and bowled 20.4 overs, he might not have had the finest of economy rates, but ended up being the highest wicket-taker.
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Harshit Rana picked 6 wickets in the series, of which 4 came in the final ODI in Sydney alone, where he shared the new ball alongside Mohammed Siraj. He had already picked up two wickets at Adelaide.
Emerging as the highest wicket-taker, Harshit silenced his critics with a spectacular performance and has fixed his spot in all overseas series meant for India in the next few months.
Sunil Gavaskar slammed his former teammate over the unpleasant criticism of Harshit Rana
Responding to the criticism from Srikkanth, especially after Rana’s splendid show in the Australia tour and his scintillating show in Sydney, Gavaskar said that criticism should be made only when a player has had enough chances to perform; otherwise, it affects their morale.
“I am so happy to see Harshit Rana getting those four wickets because he has been under fire. That is a little bit hard to understand because, at the end of the day, this is our team. And by all means, criticize after but not before. Because by criticizing anybody before, any player, you are actually demoralizing that player,” Gavaskar said on India Today.
“Once the series is over, you can by all means ask why he was picked because then you also have the benefit of hindsight. But once the team is selected, we should all absolutely 100% back the team and want it to win. Because at the end of the day, it is our team, it is India’s team,” he added.
Srikkanth too was forced into heaping praise on Rana after a four-wicket haul at SCG
The same fellow, Kris Srikkanth, who had criticized Harshit Rana’s selection, claiming that it was not out of the player’s talent but for being Gautam Gambhir‘s ‘constant yes-man,’ has now changed his version to a positive remark praising the Indian pacer.
Unlike the other bowlers, Rana might not have been economical, but he had picked several wickets, especially in the last two matches. Srikkanth too admitted that Rana bowled superbly and taking four wickets in an ODI game is a big achievement.
He also admitted having criticized Rana previously and said that he has done very well, and the more he performs in such a manner, the more he will earn fame as a confident bowler.
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