Harshit Rana is arguably as popular a name as Virat Kohli or Rohit Sharma, when it comes to social media buzz. Of course, the reasons for trending are different for the youngster, when compared to his senior teammates. These are still early days in Rana's career but he has already been fast-tracked into all three formats for India.
The national selectors, team management and head coach Gautam Gambhir clearly see immense potential in Rana whose skill-set as a pacy hit-the-deck bowler is rare asset to have. Add his powerhitting ability to this and it is not hard to realise why Rana gets backed so much. However, his selection is almost always questioned on social media where the Delhi pacer has been unfairly trolled and targeted.
Meanwhile, Rana quietly continues to do the job for India, especially in white-ball cricket. His fiery new-ball spell in the first ODI against South Africa in Ranchi was pivotal, given how dew became a big factor later in the game. South Africa managed to stay in the game till the end but losing early wickets eventually was a blow. When asked about the social media outrage, Rana gave a nonchalant response.
'If I think too much about these things and let these thoughts into my head while I am on the ground, I don't think I will be able to play cricket properly," said Rana during the press conference.
"I try to avoid it (social media) fully. I just focus on what I need to do on the ground. I don't care what the outside talk is about or what people are saying about me. My only focus is on the hard work that I need to do on the ground."
The ongoing ODI series is India's first at home since the new ICC rules came into play regarding the restriction of two new balls. Now, bowling teams are supposed to use just a single ball from both ends after the end of the 34th over. This rule change has been welcomed by pundits who feel that it could restore some balance to the ODI game that has become incredibly batter-friendly in the last decade.
What this also means is that scoring at the back end will not be as easy as it used to be. Therefore, batting in the lower middle order will require vintage skills, as the older softer ball might not have enough pace off the wicket for the modern T20 strokes. Rana feels that this rule change is a much-needed one for the bowlers.
"Bowlers generally don't get much help in cricket these days, so this is a welcome change. We always have it in our mind that there will be a ball change after the 34th over, and we try to use whichever ball has become softer by that time."
Given the high-scoring nature of the opening ODI, indications are that Raipur could serve up another run fest. A red-soil surface is on the cards, which means that strokeplay and ball-striking could be seamless. However, what could make a level playing field is the larger dimensions of the ground.
Despite making 349 in Ranchi, India were made to work really hard for their win as the game went really deep. South Africa had lost three wickets inside the first five overs of the chase and yet, gave India a real scare with their batting depth and dew factor. Rana, though, doesn't feel the need to overreact in terms of batting strategy and feels that it is too early to judge the Raipur surface.
"Before we start batting on the surface, it is difficult to assume what score will be safe. We will need to assess on the ground and adapt. Expectations will always be there, to score as many runs as possible or to restrict them to as low a total as possible."
