India ready to drop KKR star Harshit Rana from the squad against New Zealand to play Ranji Trophy for Delhi

A pace bowler Sharp Wound According to reports, India is set to release the player to play for Delhi in the upcoming Ranji Trophy match. Harshit Rana, originally a traveling substitute with the Indian Test team that hosted New Zealand in the three-match series, will reportedly be allowed to leave the national team to help Delhi in the Ranji Trophy match against Assam. Due to unavailability Navdeep SainiDelhi and Districts Cricket Association (DDCA) has sought the services of Harshit.

Saini was named in the India A squad touring Australia, which made him unavailable for the next Ranji match in Delhi. Since Harshit Rana will not feature in the second Test against New Zealand, he is likely to be eligible to represent Delhi in the Ranji Trophy, reports India times. Delhi will face Assam at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Saturday, October 26.

Harshit joins Nitish Kumar Reddy as traveling reserves released by India to play for their Ranji team. Reddy was released to play for Andhra against Gujarat. Harshit has previously played nine first-class matches, taking 36 wickets. He even scored a century with the bat.

Harshit has been a fixture in the Indian setup in all three formats since his arrival Gautam Gambhir as the head coach who also mentored him with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) during IPL 2024. However, he is expected to make his India debut in any format.

As this confirms that Rana will make his India debut before October 31, it gives Kolkata Knight Riders an opportunity to retain him as an uncapped player ahead of the mega auction of IPL 2025. An uncapped player can be retained for as little as Rs 4 crore.

Rana was a key cog for KKR as they lifted the IPL title for the third time in 2024. He scored 19 goals, ranking among the top five goal scorers.