IND vs NZ 2026: ‘There were no expectations from him’ - India great compliments Harshit Rana's brave act in Indore ODI

Legendary cricketer Sunil Gavaskar has showered praise on the India all-rounder Harshit Rana for his heroic innings against New Zealand in the third and decisive ODI. Even though India lost the match and eventually

the series as well, Rana’s innings during the 99-run partnership alongside Virat Kohli kept India in the game for some time.

For the youngster's half-century lower down the order, the 24-year-old has received praise from Sunil Gavaskar. The former India captain analysed how the all-rounder approached his innings, while trying to up the ante and get the team closer to the target. 

"He batted just like a lower-order batter bats, without any worry. There were no expectations from him. He knew that his job was to swing his bat. If he connected, great. There were occasions when the short ball was bowled. He was trying to slice it up," Gavaskar said via Star Sports.

"He wasn't able to get it, but that didn't frustrate him because he recognized that, 'If you pitch it up, I am going to hammer you, or if you pitch it halfway down, I am going to hit you for six,' and that's exactly what he did. That was the impressive part for me, that he did not get hustled by the fact that he hadn't really got any of those runs," the cricketer-turned-commentator added.

The 76-year-old further added that not every player gets an opportunity to bat with stalwarts like Sachin Tendulkar and Virat, and Harshit must savour these precious moments.

"You had somebody like a Kohli at the other end. How many people have the opportunity to bat with a Kohli or a Tendulkar? You just want to savour all those moments," Gavaskar concluded.

India lose first-ever home series to New Zealand

With the series tied at 1-1, it was a series decider at the Holkar Stadium, Indore. Batting first, the visitors posted a mammoth total of 337 runs, thanks to centuries fromDaryl Mitchell and Glenn Phillips. In reply, the Men in Blue failed to chase down the target, losing the match by 41 runs. 

Virat was at his absolute best during yet another chase, scoring 124 runs off 108 balls. But the real talking point of India’s chase was pacer Harshit Rana’s explosive batting. The Delhi-born joined Kohli when the pressure was high and was still able to add 52 runs, keeping the team in the contest, unfortunately ending in an undesirable result.