India vs Australia: Gautam Gambhir lambasts the naysayers over Harshit Rana's selection
As Shubman Gill and his men wrapped up a 2-0 sweep over the visitors in the India vs West Indies Test series, Gautam Gambhir came out for the press conference. With the India vs Australia white-ball series scheduled to kick off shortly, the head coach touched upon many topics apart from the thumping win over the Windies. Among those was the inclusion of Harshit Rana in the India squad for Australia Tour. The young pacer has faced severe criticism for his unwavering presence in the Indian setup across formats. The credit for Harshit’s continued backing has been attributed to Gambhir himself, with fans and the cricket fraternity calling out the head coach for “favoritism.”
Gautam Gambhir hits back after criticism mounts over the selection of Harshit Rana in the India squad for Australia Tour
While Gautam Gambhir did not drop any names, the India head coach made his contempt clear for specific personalities within the cricket fraternity. Former Indian spinner Ravichandran Ashwin and yesteryear star Kris Srikkanth had openly criticised the inclusion of Harshit Rana in the India squad for Australia tour. The 23-year-old has been named in both the ODI and T20I squads for the India vs Australia white-ball series.
While Ashwin appeared confused by the consistent call-ups, Srikkanth issued a rather scathing statement. The former player termed Rana a “yes-man” of Gautam Gambhir to explain his regular selection in the India squad across formats. Now, Gambhir has hit back strongly at Srikkanth and Ashwin. His remarks came soon after the team wrapped up a 2-0 sweep in the India vs West Indies series with a seven-wicket victory in the Delhi Test.
"It's shameful that someone wanting to run his YouTube channel is targeting a 23-year-old. If you want to target me, do it. I can handle it, but trolling a 23-year-old kid for YouTube views is shameful," said Gambhir. "His (Rana's) father is not a selector. He has played cricket on his own merit. Don't target these young boys."
The criticism surrounding the selection of Harshit Rana for the India vs Australia series was not confined to cricket pundits alone. Soon after the young pacer’s name appeared in the India squad for Australia tour, social media erupted with memes and negative comments mocking the Delhi speedster’s call-up. Addressing the backlash publicly, Gambhir appealed for restraint from both fans and the media. He emphasized the importance of collective responsibility, urging everyone to stand behind Indian cricket instead of constantly undermining it through unwarranted criticism.
"Social media trolling of Harshit is just not right, and imagine the mindset. Anyone’s kid will play cricket, and this is not acceptable. Everyone has a moral responsibility to make sure India's cricket does well," he said.
However, many critics argue that the skepticism over Harshit’s selection is not entirely misplaced. The pacer’s performances in national colours have been far from impressive so far. Fast-tracked into the Indian setup following an outstanding IPL 2024 season under Gambhir’s mentorship at Kolkata Knight Riders, Harshit made his Test debut in the Border Gavaskar Trophy, featuring in two matches and taking only four wickets at an average of 50.70. His form in limited-overs cricket has also been underwhelming, with an economy rate of over 10 in the last IPL season. Despite that, he was included in the Asia Cup 2025 squad, where he managed just two wickets for 79 runs in two outings.
