During a fiery on field moment of the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy opener in Perth, a young India pacer Harshit Rana was at the centre of the heated moment with Australia pacer Mitchell Starc. It was his Test debut but that did not phase Rana, who went up to the pacer whose quicks included one of the fiercest of them.
The sledge by Mitchell Starc and flaming imagery of Kohli
Harshit continued to frustrate with short balls and one even hit Starc on his helmet. Aussie Pacer who had played along with Rana in the IPL on the Kolkata Knight Riders was not very amused. He smiled back at him and said, Harshit, I bowl at faster pace than you do. I have got a long memory.”
After that, in the next few overs, Starc repeated his message in terms of reminding the young Indian pacer about pace. Rana did not relent however. And he persevered, having fun over the challenge. At one point he had Starc out on 26, a clean breakthrough in the innings.
Yet it was not merely a dismissal which was memorable in the moment. The encouraging words of the slip cordon, particularly Virat Kohli and KL Rahul contributed to make his day as he fired on all cylinders in the middle.
Harshit Rana reveals Virat Kohli and KL Rahul’s sledging push
Sharing the full story on the BeerBiceps podcast, Harshit Rana said, “I bowled a bouncer at him after a long time. One of them hit his helmet. When he sledged, I just laughed it off. But while I was walking back for my run-up, I was like ‘mar gaya. Ab ye maarega mujhe bouncer’.”
He added, “And then, from behind, Virat bhai and KL bhai kept shouting ‘maarta reh, maarta reh, idhar hi maar isko’. I was like ‘Bhaiya aap toh khel loge, mere lagegi sar pe!’” His anecdote quickly went viral, giving fans a closer look at Kohli’s intense energy and support.
Harshit has even remarked that Starc then later creamed him in the second Test adding extra realness to the banter. All this was in good humour, says Rana.
Slip of Test series, departure of Kohli and rise of Gill
They did not have the strength to sustain the momentum because although India had won the first Test in Perth that won by 295 runs they could not sustain the same through out. Australia had a great rebound and India lost in three out of four subsequent Tests. The series was lost by India and in turn large changes in the team were made.
After the loss, Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli retired of Test cricket. This paved way to a new era of Indian cricket, where the new Test captain is Shubman Gill.
India began the Gill era positively when it drew a Test series in 2-2 in England.
The job and comeback of Harshit Rana to India
Harshit Rana was chosen to cover as the first Indian Test against England and never got an opportunity to play after which he was discarded. Nevertheless, he still forms an important part of the white-ball Indian team, which won the Champions Trophy earlier this year.
The fast bowler is awaited to be back soon. India start their Asia Cup next month and again, it would be possible that Harshit plays the role in the team. His violent game and fearless attitude can also come in handy in the upcoming games.
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