Harshit Rana ready for Asia Cup duties

New Delhi, Aug 25 (PTI) India pacer Harshit Rana says game time in the ongoing Delhi Premier League has served as ideal preparation for the Asia Cup beginning on September 9.

Rana was with the Indian Test team in the UK briefly after the India A shadow tour. He had last played for India in the Champions Trophy in February.

“It is not at all that I have become out of practice. In the last 20-25 days, I have played 12-13 T20 matches. So, my practice is completely on because DPL (Delhi Premier League) was going on, before that our team’s practice was going on. "So that is a plus point for me that I am bowling well in the matches and overall performance has been good," Rana told PTI Videos.

Rana is excited about reuniting with Jasprit Bumrah, who would be available for the whole of Asia Cup after playing three out of five Tests in England due to workload management.

“I can’t tell you what Jassi (Jasprit Bumrah) bhai brings to the table, playing with him is really special, he makes things easy for us. If he’s around, the pressure on us is minimal.

"I try to stay calm, it’s always pretty exciting to wear the India jersey and play…with kind of quality bowling unit we have right now is good. I try to give my best every time, not thinking much about the outcome,” he said.

Rana is unlikely to start in the Asia Cup with Bumrah, Arshdeep Singh and all-rounder Hardik Pandya being the preferred pace trio. Rana has featured in just one T20 for India, debuting as a concussion substitute against England in January 2025 and snuck in a standout performance: 3 for 33.

In the IPL, he played 13 matches this season, picking up 15 wickets at an average of 29.86 with an economy of over 10 — numbers that have invited criticism over his Asia Cup inclusion. PTI BS BS