Gambhir＆Coチーム？

Harshit Rana is having quite the year so far. Just days after making his ODI debut, the Delhi pacer has now been included in the squad for ICC Champions Trophy. With Jasprit Bumrah ruled out of the tournament due to injury, the selectors have now turned to Rana instead of Siraj to replace Boom Boom in the squad. This brings us to a pertinent question – is picking Rana ahead of the Hyderabad pacer a wise decision?

Picking Rana over Siraj for Champions Trophy wise?

The 23-year-old pacer has lesser experience playing white-ball formats. He has played only 16 List A matches in which he has managed to take 26 wickets. In two ODIs that he has featured in so far, Rana has emerged as one of India’s go-to pacers to pick up wickets, although he has been a tad bit expensive. Going by captain Rohit Sharma explanation for leaving Siraj out, it looks like Rana is preferred as he can deliver with the new ball.

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Despite his prowess in ODIs, Siraj was left out of India’s squad for ICC Champions Trophy and the IND vs ENG ODI series. India skipper Rohit Sharma had explained that they had preferred Arshdeep Singh over the Hyderabad pacer as the latter could deliver better with the new ball.

“It is only Siraj who is not there. We were not sure if Bumrah could play. We wanted someone who could bowl with the new ball. We wanted Arshdeep to do that role. But Siraj’s effectiveness comes down with the new ball. It is unfortunate that he misses out but we wanted guys who can perform certain roles,” Rohit had said.

Rana has been fast-tracked to international cricket following his phenomenal season for KKR in IPL 2024. Head coach Gautam Gambhir, who was the team’s mentor until that season, decided to back Rana to play Tests, followed by T20Is and now ODIs. While surely one can cite bias in terms of preferring Rana over Siraj for Champions Trophy, it remains to be seen if India’s gamble of leaving out of their most experienced pacers will pay off.