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Team India pacer Harshit Rana came in to bat at No.7 ahead of Shivam Dube in the eighth over of the second T20I against Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Friday, October 31. He had to step out much earlier than intended, as the batting unit crumbled at the hands of the pacers after being put into bat first.
Harshit Rana stepped out to bat after Axar Patel's unfortunate run out, with all-rounder Shivam Dube still in the hut. The left-handed explosive batter has proven to be a reliable batter for India, regularly featuring in the T20I middle-order setup for a while now.
However, the southpaw had to wait for his turn despite India being in desperate need of control in the middle, with the score reading 49-5 after 7.3 overs. Harshit Rana, was interestingly named at No.6 in the official team sheet in the first and the second T20I of the series. He did not avail a chance to bat in the rain-curtailed series opener in Canberra, but has been granted a promotion in the crucial contest at the MCG.
Fans failed to understand the rationale behind the move, considering the situation, conditions, and the opposition. Here are some of the reactions on social media:
Wow Harshit Rana ahead of Shivam Dube, soon we might see him open the innings. Gambir and Harshit's never ending love story continues. #INDvsAUS
So Harshit Rana is better than Shivam Dube in batting 😆 he comes ahead of him at MCG while even a proper batsmen are struggling...GG thu Einstein hain...
Just tuned in to watch #AUSvIND T20I & I see India 49-5 and Harshit Rana in the middle, batting alongside Abhishek Sharma! That's enough of Gautam Gambhir Stupidity for me today!
GG has taken memes on harshit rana seriously and now he's ready to even sacrifice the team to justify harshit's selection
Harshit rana playing ahead of shivam dube 👀 what is happening in the Indian team ?
Harshit Rana had scored a bright cameo of 24 runs off 18 runs in AUS vs IND 2025 2nd ODI
The youngster played all three ODIs against Australia recently as India tried to include as much batting depth as possible in their playing XI. The ploy had paid off in the second ODI at the Adelaide Oval, where he scored a cameo, chipping in with some important runs to help the team breach the 250-run mark.
At the time of writing, Harshit Rana is playing second fiddle to Abhishek Sharma's pyrotechnics. He is batting on 17 runs off 19 deliveries, with the score reading 83-5 after 12 overs.
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Edited by Gokul Nair
English (US)