Sunil Gavaskar recently addressed Kris Srikkanth’s comments on Harshit Rana, saying that players are criticised before being given a fair chance to perform. Former cricketer Srikkanth stirred controversy by suggesting that Harshit’s selection was influenced by his closeness with head coach Gautam Gambhir.

“I’m thrilled to see Harshit Rana taking those four wickets, especially since he’s been under a lot of criticism. It’s hard to understand because, at the end of the day, this is our team. Criticism should come after a performance, not before. Criticising players before they prove themselves only demoralises them,” Gavaskar said on India Today.

“Once the series is over, you can by all means ask why he was picked. But once the team is selected, we should all absolutely 100% back the team and want it to win. Because at the end of the day, it is our team, it is India’s team.”

Srikkanth had alleged that Harshit’s call-up to India’s ODI team for the three-match series against Australia was not about skills, but more about his loyalty as a ‘yes-man’ to Gautam Gambhir.

“Harshit Rana is one of the permanent members of the team. No one really understands why he’s there. Constant chopping and changing will only hurt the players’ confidence. Some players are ignored even after performing well, while others are chosen despite their poor form. The best way to stay in the team is to agree with Gambhir on everything. If you’re selecting players like Harshit Rana and Nitish Kumar Reddy as your key options, you can forget about winning the trophy,” Srikkanth had said.