Asked how he felt with the presence of the two stars in the team and helpful tips from them on field, Harshit said it was huge for him.

“This is a huge thing for me and for the team. They always help the youngsters. They always tell us how to improve. So the team gets better automatically. The environment is very good with them.”

Another questioner pressed him on the same theme, and Harshit said it was a “happy environment”.

“It’s a happy environment as they always motivate, back you and tell you what next step to take. Even if you are under pressure on the field, they help you with suggestions.”

Since he has bowled with the new ball in the first ODI, in the absence of Jasprit Bumrah, he was asked who he takes tips on how to bowl with the new ball. And Harshit mentioned Morne Morkel, the bowling coach, and Arshdeep Singh.

“I have been working with Morne. I also consult Arshdeep a lot as he is experienced and always helps me with suggestions.”

The big difference with the new ball that was seen from Harshit was the lengths he bowled. He can often bang the ball short of length, but at Ranchi, with the ball skidding on, he hit a fuller-length that helped him.

One such skidder from round the stumps burst through the defences of the left-handed Ryan Rickleton to clatter the stumps. Another similar delivery, though not as sharp a nip-backer as the Rickleton one, was enough to induce an edge from Quinton de Kock. Both deliveries were about 139 km/h in pace.

Later, he returned to take out the enterprising Dewald Brevis with a really full delivery. The dew was on at that time, but he managed to hold his poise and slipped in a full ball that shaped away after landing outside off. Brevis ended up slicing his intended big hit and holed out to sweeper cover.

In that spell, Harshit bowled a lot of cross-seam balls, varied his lengths and used a lot of change-of-pace deliveries to keep the batsmen honest. Asked if he liked bowling in India, he replied in affirmative.

“I like bowling in India as here you depend on variations. In every phase you have to be different- at times attack, sometimes defend.”

He also shared his method to deal with criticism on his bowling and selection in the team. “If I get all those into my head, I can’t play cricket. I don’t care what’s said about me outside.I don’t read all that. I just focus on what I need to do on the ground.”