Hardik Pandya second star India cricketer after Rohit Sharma to comply with BCCI diktat, Virat Kohli stays mum

This comes a day after Rohit reportedly expressed his desire to play the Vijay Hazare Trophy following BCCI's ‘play domestic to play for India’ diktat, although the Mumbai Cricket Association is yet to receive any official communication. Virat Kohli, meanwhile, has not yet made any move. He is currently in London with his family.

Hardik, who has been undergoing an intensive rehabilitation program at the BCCI Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru, is said to be nearing full match fitness. If his progress continues as expected, the 32-year-old could feature as early as Baroda’s opening game of the tournament, which begins on November 26 in Hyderabad. Even in a delayed scenario, he is expected to be available by the team’s second fixture.

The dynamic all-rounder has been out of action since suffering a left quadricep injury during India’s Asia Cup fixture against Sri Lanka. The setback forced him to miss the tournament’s final against Pakistan and subsequently the white-ball series in Australia. Pandya has since spent the past few weeks working intensively in Bengaluru, focusing on conditioning and strength to regain full fitness.

Once he receives his Return to Play (RTP) clearance from the CoE, Pandya is expected to head straight to Hyderabad to join the Baroda squad. The selectors and team management are keen for him to get some competitive match time under his belt before India’s upcoming ODI series against South Africa.

India’s three-match ODI series against the Proteas will be played in Ranchi, Raipur, and Visakhapatnam on November 30, December 3, and December 6, respectively. The home season will then move into a five-match T20I leg starting December 9 in Cuttack.

If all goes according to plan, Pandya could feature in at least one Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy fixture before donning the India jersey again, marking his comeback to international cricket after nearly three months on the sidelines.

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