Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) secretary Jay Shah has revealed when Hardik Pandya will return to the Indian team. He revealed that the all-rounder is expected to return in the T20I series against Afghanistan.
Hardik Pandya suffered an injury during the match against Bangladesh in the ICC World Cup 2023. He sprained his ankle while bowling and was later ruled out of the tournament. He was expected to return soon, but that has not been the case.
Hardik Pandya suffered a much worse injury than expected as there has been no sign of him yet. The all-rounder was not part of Australia’s T20Is and has not been named in the squad for the South Africa series. There were reports suggesting that he would return through IPL.
However, Jay Shah gave optimistic news about Hardik Pandya. While talking to PTI, he said that the all-rounder could make a comeback through the Afghanistan series. India will play three T20Is against them in January. starting January 11. The all-rounder could even be the captain of the team during that series.
“Hardik Pandya could be ready for the Afghanistan T20 series in January,” the BCCI secretary was quoted as saying by PTI.
Hardik Pandya has been the captain of the Indian team in T20Is since their exit from the T20 World Cup 2022. He led the young team in the absence of the seniors and was very successful. He is also seen as a future captaincy prospect.
Hardik Pandya in talks with Mumbai Indians ahead of IPL 2024
In what was the biggest trade in IPL history, Gujarat Titans captain Hardik Pandya returned to his former franchise, Mumbai Indians. It was a cash exchange as the five-time champions paid Rs 15 million along with an undisclosed amount. It will be a homecoming for Hardik as he made his IPL debut with Mumbai Indians and played for 7 long seasons for them.
Hardik Pandya was one of the draft picks of the Gujarat Titans when they were born. The all-rounder wrote history, since in the first edition he led the team as leader to the title victory. He led from the front with both bat and ball and in the next edition he led the team to the final and finished runners-up.