The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Vice-President Rajeev Shukla joined head coach Gautam Gambhir about the backlash that young pacer Harshit Rana faced over his inclusion in the upcoming white ball series against Australia.
There are speculations that Harshit is Gambhir's blue-eyed boy, and that's the reason behind his inclusion in across all formats. After chief selector Ajit Agarkar announced the contingent for India's white-ball tour of Australia last week, fans and former cricketers questioned Harshit's place in the 15-member squad for the series, scheduled to start from October 19.
Questions on Harshit Rana's selection in the Indian squad
Former India captain and selector Krishnamachari Srikkanth shared his thoughts on Harshit Rana's inclusion in the squad, saying that he is "one permanent member in the team". Certain sections of fans questioned Harshit's inclusion over Mohammad Shami, who was the joint-highest wicket-taker for India during the nation's unbeaten run to the Champions Trophy earlier this year.
Rajeev Shukla on Harshit Rana's criticism
After India's seven-wicket win against West Indies in 2nd Test at Arun Jaitely Stadium in New Delhi, Gambhir slammed Harshit Rana's critics, and Shukla also believes that criticism should be done with responsibility, which doesn't bring a player's morale down.
"Gautam Gambhir is right. If someone has any complaints about the players, then it should be done responsibly. This will bring the players' morale down. It is the job of the team to select players. So, before you say anything about the players, you should think about how much responsibility you should take," Shukla said while speaking exclusively to ANI.
Harshit Rana's ODI career
Notably, Harshit Rana, who made his ODI debut against England earlier this year against England, has played two ODIs where he managed to pick up four wickets. Harshit's last ODI outing came against Pakistan in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 at Dubai International Stadium in Dubai.
India's ODI squad
Shubman Gill (Captain), Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Shreyas Iyer (VC), Axar Patel, KL Rahul (WK), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar, Kuldeep Yadav, Harshit Rana, Mohammed Siraj, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna, Dhruv Jurel (WK), Yashasvi Jaiswal.