The Indian cricket team is on a roll, as they have won all six games in the World Cup 2023.
The Indian cricket team is on a roll, as they have won all six games in the World Cup 2023. They have been the most dominating side in the competition and are a team to beat now. India last defeated England in Lucknow on Sunday (October 29).
However, the Men in Blue will be concerned about the fitness of Hardik Pandya. Pandya sustained an injury to his left ankle while bowling against Bangladesh in Pune and didn’t return to bowl again. Virat Kohli had to complete the over.
Hardik was soon ruled out of the next few games and didn’t feature against New Zealand in Dharamsala and England in Lucknow. While the injury is not as serious, the team don’t want to take any risk. Hardik’s absence hasn’t haunted India for now, but he is a real asset for India.
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India will now enter the business end of the tournament and face some top opponents in the remaining games, including the semifinal. While India’s spot is not guaranteed yet, they are most likely to qualify for the next round. Hence, Hardik will have to return before the knockout phase and provide the balance to the side.
Hardik Pandya is currently in the National Cricket Academy (NCA) and working on his recovery. There is so much uncertainty around his return date, and the speculations are high. However, a source related to the team has disclosed the latest update on the talismanic all-rounder.
“Hardik Pandya has already had a couple of net sessions at the NCA, is under constant supervision of the BCCI medical team and looking good,” said a source to Cricketnext. “It will be difficult to put a date on return at this stage, but signs are encouraging, and India’s unbeaten run has certainly allowed him more time to recover and be ready for the knockouts.”
The source also added that the team don’t want to put the burden of travelling on Hardik Pandya, and he can join the squad when the team arrive in Bengaluru for their game against the Netherlands.
“See, no one wants to burden Hardik with travelling at this point. He is already in Bengaluru and could well rejoin the squad there itself. Whether he plays that game or not is too early to say, but the Bengaluru link-up is very much on the cards because that game would mean no travel also.”
While India haven’t required Hardik’s need in the previous two matches, he is an integral member, and the team would want him to regain fitness as soon as possible. India will face Sri Lanka in their next encounter in Mumbai on Thursday (November 2).
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