In a fiery press conference held at the Feroz Shah Kotla, following India’s dominant seven-wicket Test series victory over the West Indies, India head coach Gautam Gambhir came out with a staunch defense of young pacer Harshit Rana. Gambhir’s impassioned comments were a direct response to recent criticism from former World Cup winner and ex-chief selector K. Srikkanth, who had openly questioned Rana’s inclusion in the squad for the upcoming ODI series against Australia.
This controversy ignited after Srikkanth released a video on his YouTube channel, harshly criticizing the 23-year-old Delhi pacer’s selection. Srikkanth had stated: “Best is to be like Harshit Rana and be a constant yes-man to Gambhir to be selected. There is only one permanent member – Harshit Rana. Nobody knows why he is there in the team. You don’t pick someone irrespective if they do well and take others even if they don’t.”
Gambhir, visibly upset by what he perceived as a deeply personal and unfair attack on a young player, minced no words in his response. He told reporters: “Look, it’s a little shameful, and I’ll be honest with you. It’s unfair that you are not even sparing a 23-year-old kid to run your YouTube channels. It’s unfair because, after all, his father is not some ex-chairman, an ex-cricketer, or an NRI. Whatever cricket he has played, he has played on his own merit, and in the future too, he will play on his own merit.”
The head coach further emphasized the severe mental toll such criticism can inflict on developing athletes. “Targeting someone individually is not fair. You can target someone for their performance, and for that, there are people… there are selectors,” Gambhir added, highlighting the appropriate channels for performance-based critiques.
He urged critics to be more considerate of Rana’s age and relative inexperience, stating: “When you say such things to a 23-year-old kid, and then social media amplifies it even more, just imagine his mindset when he hears all this. Tomorrow, even your kid could end up playing for the country. The least one can do is realize that he is not 33 years old; he is just 23. You can criticize me; I can handle it. But a 23-year-old boy is a 23-year-old boy, and this is unacceptable.”
Gambhir concluded his remarks by appealing to all commentators and fans to uphold their “moral responsibility” towards Indian cricket, advocating for a focus on actual performances rather than resorting to personal attacks.
Harshit Rana has seen a steady rise, establishing himself as a three-format player for India. He made his Test debut in Perth during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy last November and has since represented India in ODIs and T20Is earlier this year against England.