NEW DELHI: Indian pacer Harshit Rana recently opened up about a heated on-field exchange with Australian speedster Mitchell Starc during the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, where he peppered Starc with bouncers before dismissing him for 26 — all while receiving spirited backing from senior pros Virat Kohli and KL Rahul.The duel ignited when Rana unleashed a barrage of short balls at Starc, one of which struck the Aussie on the helmet. Starc, also his Kolkata Knight Riders teammate in the IPL, responded with a trademark smirk and a warning:“Harshit, I bowl faster than you. I’ve got a long memory.”Speaking on the BeerBiceps podcast, Rana shared his thoughts during that tense moment, admitting a mix of adrenaline and fear as he walked back to his mark.“I bowled him a bouncer after a long time. One hit his helmet. When he sledged, I just laughed. But while walking back, I thought, ‘Mar gaya, ab ye mujhe bouncer maarega!’”
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“And then from behind, Virat bhai and KL bhai were shouting from the slips — ‘Maarta reh, maarta reh, idhar hi maar isko!’ I thought, ‘Bhaiya aap toh bach jaoge, mere toh lagne wali hai!’”
As fate would have it, Starc did retaliate later, striking Rana on the helmet during the second Test. But the young Indian pacer took it in stride, chalking it up to the spirit of the contest.Rana’s journey with the Indian team has had its ups and downs. While he has impressed in phases — including his stint in Australia — consistency at the international level has remained elusive.Most recently, he was part of the Test squad against England as a backup but was later released. Nevertheless, Rana remains an active contributor in white-ball formats and was a member of the Indian side that clinched the Champions Trophy.
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