While the management had initially promised that Pandya will return in 5 days, he ended up being on the sidelines for three whole months.
The Indian team faced a major blow during their 2023 ODI World Cup campaign when all-rounder Hardik Pandya sprained his ankle and was ruled out of the tournament. While the management had initially promised that Pandya will return in 5 days, he ended up being on the sidelines for three whole months.
In the fourth match of the World Cup against Bangladesh in Pune, Hardik suffered an apparent ankle twist while bowling his first over. Following the intervention from physiotherapists, Hardik left the field. Subsequently, it was disclosed that he would not participate further in the match.
Despite India’s victory by seven wickets which helped them advance to the knockout stages, Hardik’s absence disrupted the team’s equilibrium to some extent.
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Speaking about the incident, Hardik said: “I had preparing for the World Cup for more than a year. It was a freak injury during the match. The injury was said to be for 25 days and that would mean I would miss the rest of the World Cup, but I pushed.”
“I told the management that I would return after five days. I got injections done on my ankle in three places. I had to remove blood from my ankle because of the swelling. I wanted to give everything,” Hardik told in an interaction on Star Sports.
Meanwhile, Hardik Pandya has changed his allegiance and will be making a return for the Mumbai Indians in the upcoming IPL 2024.
Hardik’s first assignment as MI skipper will be against his former side Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad on March 24.
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