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After years of rejection, Harshit Rana joined KKR in 2022. In 2024 he took 19 wickets, won the title and got a call-up for India thanks to his father.
Indian team celebrates. (PTI photo)
Indian pacer Harshit Rana on Sunday said he spent 10 years of his life chasing “nothing”, was rejected several times in court, and cried every day in front of his father Pradeep at home.
Lana’s rise was slow at first, then rapid. He was picked up by Kolkata Knight Riders in the 2022 auction for a base price of Rs 2 million. For the first two years, he played like a young up-and-coming talent. And in 2024, he quickly became a key element in the attack, taking 19 wickets, the highest for an uncapped player that year, and helping the franchise win its first title in 12 years.
He was called up to India for the Tests later that year and is now a regular in all formats.
“Now I know how to deal with failure,” Lana said. Men’s XP. “I saw 10 years where nothing happened. I went to trial and my name wasn’t called. I came back and cried every day in front of my dad. So I think I’m no longer a failure now. I think I can handle whatever happens. I had given up, but my dad literally kept pushing me.”
Lana’s childhood was so focused on cricket that she didn’t have friends or even a phone until she was an adult. Pradeep slept next to him for years, waking him up early in the morning and sometimes fighting with his mother to stop him from going to school.
“I didn’t even have a smartphone until I reached 12th place,” Harshit said. “Dad always woke me up at 4:30 and took me home from practice at 6. Mom told me to go to school, but dad told me to go to bed. So they fought. Mom scolded me and said she didn’t want to go to school. But… I used to ask my mom, “What should I do if I get stopped?” Because he had another practice at 1 p.m. and the place was two and a half hours from his house, so he thought it would be a good idea to sleep in since he would be late if he went to school. I had no friends either. He slept with me and woke me up at 4:30 every day. ”
January 18, 2026, 14:52 IST
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