India’s allrounder Hardik Pandya has made the comeback in the ongoing ODI series against SouthAfrica at home. He will be seen on the ground with the team after six months. Pandya was recovering from a back injury. The player said he had faced tough times during the rehabilitation period because he was trying too hard to make the comeback.
Last year, in August ahead of the Test series against South Africa, Pandya recurred with an old back injury after which he had undergone surgery in the UK. His name was included in India A squad for the series against New Zealand XI but because of not being hundred per cent, he was ruled out of the team. Since then, he has been under the rehabilitation period in National Cricket Academy (NCA).
A lot of mental pressure came at recovery time: Hardik Pandya
The Baroda player, while talking to Yuzvendra Chahal on ‘Chahal TV’. He opined that he was badly missing India’s dressing room atmosphere. The Surat-based cricketer expressed that he had to go under mental pressure in a bid make a comeback.
“I missed this atmosphere the most in these last six months, playing for the country and the feeling you get wearing the team’s colours. That had become a mental challenge and there were a lot of setbacks. I was trying to get back to full fitness quickly but that did not work out and a lot of mental pressure came at the time. But touchwood, everything went fine, the rehabilitation went well and a lot of people helped me.” Hardik said.
Hardik Pandya On His DY Patil’s performance:
Pandya was outstanding in the DY Patil T20 cup. He slammed back-to-back centuries for Reliance 1 in the event. Lastly, he struck 158 off 55 balls that include 20 gigantic sixes.
The allrounder said that the DY Patil tournament was important for him as it has helped him to gain back the momentum.
“It was important. I had not played anything for six and a half months. I wanted to make an international comeback so it was very important for my confidence. No matter how much you practice, the match situation is always different,” said Pandya when asked about DY Patil Cup performance.
“So I just kept on playing, my confidence kept improving and the sixes were coming off well. I thought if they are coming off well, why should I stop and I kept going. But I never thought that I want to hit 20 sixes in an innings,” he added.
Meanwhile, the first ODI match between India and South Africa is delayed because of rain and there is no surety whether the match will be played or not.