Gautam Gambhir Defends Harshit Rana: Amid the joy of clean-sweeping the West Indies 2-0 in the two-Test series, India head coach Gautam Gambhir took out time to hit back at criticism and allegations involving him and Harshit Rana, the 23-year-old pacer from Delhi, Gambhirâ€s home city.
Rana rose to the limelight last year following a terrific IPL campaign, where he helped Kolkata Knight Riders win the IPL 2024 title. Gambhir was the KKR mentor for that season before becoming Indiaâ€s head coach late last year.
Soon after, Harshit Rana, who also can whack the ball and is being looked at as a future No. 8 in Indiaâ€s white-ball sides, made his debut for India in all three formats and was part of Indiaâ€s winning squads at the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 and the Asia Cup 2025, though he didnâ€t make significant contributions as both tournaments were played in the UAE.
You donâ€t spare even a 23-year-old boy to run your YouTube channel: Gautam Gambhir Defends Harshit Rana
Fans and some experts, particularly former India captain and chairman of selectors Kris Srikkanth, were irked by Ranaâ€s selection in Indiaâ€s ODI and T20I squads for the upcoming tour of Australia. Srikkanth even went on to say that Rana is Gambhirâ€s “constant yes-man,†and thatâ€s how he retains his place in the squad.
Following Indiaâ€s series win against the West Indies in Delhi, Gambhir lashed out at the “shameful†criticism of Ranaâ€s selection.
“Look, itâ€s a bit shameful. And I will be very honest with you. If you do not spare even a 23-year-old boy to run your YouTube channel, itâ€s unfair. Because ultimately [Ranaâ€s] father is not an ex-chairman [of selectors] or an ex-cricketer or an NRI. He plays cricket on his own merit. And he will continue to play on his own merit,†Gambhir said in the post-match press conference.
“At least you can realise that he is a 23-year-old kid. He is not 33. Criticise me, I can still handle it. But a 23-year-old boy is a 23-year-old boy. I think that is why we need to be careful. What you say is only to run your YouTube channel.â€
Harshit is likely to get opportunities during the Australia tour, which includes three ODIs and five T20Is, starting October 19.
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