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"Harshit Rana wore AIRPODS while bowling in nets"- Ajinkya Rahane divulges unseen side

Soumyajit Dutta

Harshit Rana was bothered by social media [Source: @harshit_rana_06/Instagram]Harshit Rana was bothered by social media [Source: @harshit_rana_06/Instagram]

Since his India debut in 2024, Harshit Rana has faced constant scrutiny and trolling on social media. Despite the 24-year-old Delhi pacer delivering in crucial moments, his selection has been clouded by allegations of favouritism from critics like former selector Kris Srikkanth, who linked Harshit Rana’s place to his rapport with coach Gautam Gambhir.

Gautam Gambhir issued a strong defence of the young speedster, urging critics to be mindful of their impact on emerging talent. The noise grew louder as Harshit Rana's debut coincided with IPL retention strategies, leading to unfounded claims about Kolkata Knight Riders' motives.

KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane later revealed how the bowler was initially affected by the online trolling.

Ajinkya Rahane on Harshit Rana suffering from trolling

Speaking to Cricbuzz, KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane shared how the trolling affected Harshit Rana.

“See, we actually spoke about social media when he was playing in the IPL last year. In certain matches, he didn't do well, and I saw basically, a little nervous, a little sad. It was bothering him,” Ajinkya Rahane said on Cricbuzz.

However, Ajinkya Rahane highlighted Rana’s unique way of channelling the criticism. Rahane said that Rana used to anchor those hat comments to get motivated and perform better on the field.

“‘When I see all the comments, when I see what they are writing about me, they don't know how hard I have worked in my bowling. So that actually motivates me to do well for the team. I said, ‘Are you okay with all that?’ He said I am okay to read all the comments,’” Rahane added.

Harshit Rana developed distraction method

According to Rahane, Harshit Rana even developed a distinct method to maintain focus and to shut down the noise.

“I have seen him using AirPods during practice sessions when he was bowling, just to cut out the noise. That is his method to cut out his noise,” said Rahane.

“We all thought what he was doing? Why is he wearing those AirPods? Later, we got to know that he just wanted to cut the noise. When he is bowling, he just wants to get in the zone, bowl with the same intensity and mindset,” Rahane added.

Rana answers doubters

Rana answered his critics with a decisive all-round performance in the first ODI against New Zealand. He took two crucial wickets of openers Devon Conway and Henry Nicholls and also anchored the team with the bat during a pivotal point.

After Shreyas Iyer’s wicket cost India to stand at 242/5 while having 59 runs still left on the board to chase, Harshit Rana paired with KL Rahul to help weather the storm as the latter saw the end to the game in style and India won with 4 wickets left.