Ajinkya Rahane has revealed that pacer Harshit Rana remains unfazed by criticism from naysayers. Rahane admitted he initially thought the 24-year-old was under pressure, but it turned out to be quite the opposite: Rana told him that negative comments actually fuel his motivation and push him to perform better.

Rana has shouldered more criticism and online abuse than most players at a similar stage of their careers. Since making his India debut in November 2024, he’s earned caps across all formats. Still developing, Rana hasn’t yet taken the world by storm, but his resilience and mindset stand out significantly.

“See, we actually spoke about social media when he was playing in the IPL last year. In certain matches, he didn’t do well, and I saw, basically, a little nervous, a little sad. It was bothering him. He told me, ‘When I see all the comments, when I see what they are writing about me, they don’t know how hard I have worked in my bowling. So that actually motivates me to do well for the team.’ I said, ‘Are you okay with all that?’ He said, ‘I am okay to read all the comments,’” Ajinkya Rahane told Cricbuzz.

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Rahane explained that Rana deals with the noise by entering a focused “zone,” a mental space where everything outside cricket fades away. Even in practice, Rana deliberately shuts out distractions — a habit that puzzled some Kolkata Knight Riders teammates at first but is now understood as part of his preparation.

“I have seen him using AirPods during practice sessions when he was bowling, to cut out the noise. That is his method to cut out his noise. We all thought what he was doing. Why is he wearing those AirPods? Later, we got to know that he wanted to cut the noise. When he is bowling, he wants to get in the zone, bowl with the same intensity and mindset,” Ajinkya Rahane added.

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Rana’s temperament was on show in the first ODI against New Zealand, where he impressed with both ball and bat. With the ball, he returned figures of 2/65, claiming the wickets of Henry Nicholls and Devon Conway; with the bat, he played a useful cameo, scoring a brisk 29 off 23 balls that included two fours and a six. For a young fast bowler under scrutiny, those contributions — and the mental steel behind them — speak louder than any online criticism.