12 January,2026 06:16 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
KL Rahul, Harshit Rana during the match against New Zealand on Sunday (Pic: BCCI)
In the first ODI match against New Zealand on Sunday, Team India emerged victorious by four wickets at the Vadodara International Cricket Stadium in Kotambi.
Wicketkeeper-batsman KL Rahul gave the finishing touches to India's victory. Facing 21 balls, he scored an unbeaten 29 runs, which were laced with two boundaries and a maximum. Shouldering the innings was Harshit Rana, who scored 29 runs off 23 balls, including two boundaries and a six, before departing.
The duo stitched a crucial partnership of 37 runs.
After the match, KL Rahul spoke about batting with Harshit Rana, saying he had to calm the 24-year-old and remind him not to go for a big shot on every delivery.
"Batting with Harshit Rana in the final overs was fun. I had to calm him down. He kept asking me to remind him not to try and hit a six every ball, because that was his mindset. I had to settle him. He is new to ODIs and hasn't played many games," Rahul said on JioHotstar.
He also said that Harshit is a kind of player which every team wants to have in their squad.
"We have all seen his potential. He batted well in Australia and has played crucial knocks for the team. The dressing room sees his potential and wants him to develop into a great cricketer, the kind of player every team wants to have in their squad," added Rahul.
The 33-year-old cricketer then said that at times, the pacer gets overconfident, but labelled it as a "good attitude". Rahul also revealed the strategy they followed during the run chase of 301 runs against the "Black Caps".
"He is tall, bowls at 145 kph with good variations, and can contribute with the bat. He has a good attitude. Sometimes he is a little overconfident, but I'd rather have that than no confidence at all. Once he hit a few boundaries, I told him we weren't chasing much. We aimed for one boundary an over, took one calculated risk, and then tried to get me back on strike," he said.
The second ODI match between Team India and New Zealand is scheduled to be played on Wednesday at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot.
(With ANI Inputs)
