Harshit Rana’s blessing in disguise to miss India debut, could be retained as uncapped player by KKR

Harshit Rana’s blessing in disguise to miss India debut, could be retained as uncapped player by KKR. (Source – Twitter/X)

Pace bowling all-rounder Harshit Rana would have personally loved to make his debut for the Indian setup in the third and final match of the series against Bangladesh in Hyderabad. However, a viral infection, as revealed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), ruled him out of securing his debut cap for the nation. However, as the famous adagge goes, “every cloud has a silver lining,” which was surely the case for a certain domestic franchise.

Rana’s non-participation in the XI in Hyderabad meant joy elsewhere, in particular to the management and supporters of the Kolkata Knight Riders. Despite Harshit being a part of the travelling reserves for India’s upcoming Test series against New Zealand, it seems unlikely that the team management would tinker with the usual constituents of the pace-bowling attack for the three Tests. Even in that case, India would fall back on the others in the 15-member squad.

According to the latest rules and regulations, Governing Council notified that a player with an “uncapped” status can be retained by a particular franchise for INR 4 crore. This essentially means Rana could well and truly be retained by KKR. The rule doesn’t determine the fate of Rana with the defending champions, but certainly gives an option to the franchise for optimum utilization of resources.

Another aspect in which KKR could leverage this situation would be to invest more heavily in other domains of the squad with the virtually saved funds. Had Rana been in the XI in the third T20I, he would have been probably retained regardless, but for a much more magnified amount. As per the IPL Governing Council, KKR as well as other franchises are bound to submit their retention list by October 31, 2024, post which the auctions will be conducted.

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