Head coach Gautam Gambhir said that India see Harshit Rana as a potential bowling all-rounder. On Sunday, India clinched the ODI series 2-1 against South Africa in Vizag with a nine-wicket win.with Rana picking up four wickets from three matches. Despite not having many opportunities to bat, Gambhir believes Rana can develop into a reliable eight.
With the ball, Harshit claimed three wickets in India’s 13-run win in Ranchi, followed by 1 for 70 in Raipur. He returned figures of 8–2–44–0 in Vizag. Gambhir said India is focused on finding the right team balance and praised Harshita, Prasidh Krishna and Arshdeep Singh for stepping up despite their limited experience.
“That’s one of the reasons we’re probably trying to develop someone like Harshit who can really bat at 8 and contribute with the bat at No. 8. That’s why we need to find a balance because we’d also need three good seamers in two years to South Africa,” Gambhir said after India’s series win.
“And if he can continue to develop as a bowling all-rounder, it will give us a huge boost. Because of course with Jasprit Bumrah coming back and what we’ve seen in this series from Arshdeep (Singh), Prasidh (Krishna) and Harshit, (it) has been unbelievable.”
“All these three guys don’t have a lot of experience, especially in the 50-overs format. They’ve barely played less than 15 ODIs, all three bowlers, but they’ve done a great job. So I feel if we can develop someone like Harshit at No. 8 who can contribute with the bat, I think that will give us the right balance,” added Gamb’.
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Harshit Rana has produced useful cameos with the bat time and again. In October, he hit 35 off 33 balls, including three fours and a six, against Australia in the second T20I at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. During the ODI series on the same tour, he contributed a handy 24 off 18 deliveries with three fours in the second ODI at Adelaide Oval.
In first-class cricket, Rana averages 31.18 from 14 matches, with one century and two fifties. In 2023, he smashed an unbeaten 122 off 86 balls – including 12 fours and nine sixes – for North Zone in the Duleep Trophy quarter-final against North East Zone at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
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Issued by:
sabyasachi chowdhury
Published on:
December 7, 2025
