Harshit Rana badly scolded by Gautam Gambhir, told 'perform kar, warna bahar bitha dunga'

Harshit Rana badly scolded by Gautam Gambhir

Harshit Rana has been subjected to heavy trolling over, with many questioning his spot in all three formats for India. The 23-year-old has been a regular in the Indian dressing room since the appointment of Gautam Gambhir as head coach but has failed to meet expectations. This has led to immense criticism from a section of fans, also few former cricketers.

However, Rana impressed many with his bowling in the third and final ODI against Australia in Sydney, which India won by nine wickets. Rana helped India gain momentum with crucial injections in the middle overs, dismissing Australia's no. 5,6,7 - Alex Carey, Cooper Connolly, Mitchell Owen. He then inflicted the final blow by dismissing tailender Josh Hazlewood in the second ball of the 47th over as Australia were folded for 236 after winning the toss and opting to bat.

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Sharvan, Rana's childhood coach, has revealed an interesting detail about his ward following the clinical effort. Speaking with Times of India, Sharvan said Rana spoke with him on the phone before the match and then mentioned the scolding he got from Gambhir.

"He called me and told me that he wanted to shut the outside noise with his performance. I just said, believe in yourself. I know some cricketers say he is close to Gambhir. But Gambhir knows how to identify talent, and he backs them. He has backed a lot of cricketers, and they have done wonders for their team. He, in fact, scolded Harshit badly. He told him directly, ‘perform kar, warna bahar bitha dunga.’ He sends a clear message to whoever you are," said Sharvan.

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Sharvan addressed the trolling Rana has received, also namedropping ex-India cricketer Krishnamachari Srikkanth, who had alleged favourtism in team selection.

"Rana is 23. Let’s give him some time. First Krishnamachari Srikkanth took the case of this kid. After retirements, cricketers have started their YouTube channels to earn, but please don’t scrutinise any kid who just started. They have the right to guide, scold, but please don’t say anything for your YouTube channel’s visibility," Sharvan said.

Earlier addressing media after the second Test between India and West Indies in New Delhi, Gambhir too had blasted at people for targetting Rana on their respective YouTube channels.