Hardik Pandya and Gautam Gambhir have started on the wrong foot here as the all-rounder found himself out of contention from India’s T20I captaincy and also lost his vice-captaincy in white-ball formats as well.
This came when BCCI, on Thursday, announced the India squads for the Sri Lanka tour for 3 ODIs and 3 T20Is. The ODI series will be played on August 2, 4, and 7 in RPS Stadium in Colombo, while the T20Is will precede on July 27, 28 and 30 at the Pallekele Stadium.
While all eyes are on Pandya’s loss of the India T20I captaincy to Suryakumar due to an active role played by head coach Gautam Gambhir and chief selector Ajit Agarkar, it has now been revealed that his ODI status is also in doubt.
Hardik, whose decision to take a voluntary break from the Sri Lanka ODIs was not received well by some members of the selection committee, has been apprised of the team management’s plans.
It is understood that Hardik’s constant struggle to remain injury-free for a long period went against him.
Gautam Gambhir reminds Hardik Pandya that he wants him to bowl 10 overs quota in ODIs
Earlier this year, BCCI secretary Jay Shah stated unequivocally that all players must be ready for domestic cricket if they wish to return to the Indian team following an injury layoff.
Certain exceptions apply to Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Jasprit Bumrah. But Pandya is not a member of that privileged group.
Gautam Gambhir, on his call with Hardik Pandya, has informed the star all-rounder that he has to play the Vijay Hazare Trophy for Baroda to prove his bowling fitness.
“Hardik was also reminded by Gambhir on the call, that he was looking forward to see him bowl his full quota in ODIs,” a BCCI official told HT.
Hardik hasn’t played any 50-over cricket since the ODI World Cup in 2023. His tournament was cut short when he twisted his ankle while bowling in a group-stage match against Bangladesh.
He demonstrated his fitness by playing the full IPL season, earning an automatic selection for the T20 World Cup when he proved to be an important cog in India’s wheel. However, the selectors and coach Gambhir are still not sure that his body is ready for the rigors of an ODI.
Pandya’s next opportunity to demonstrate his fitness will be in three ODIs against England in January. However, if he wants to be considered for the Champions Trophy in February next year, he will have to do well in the domestic season.
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