India’s first-choice all-rounder Hardik Pandya has been ruled out of the upcoming three-match Test series against South Africa at home. He is set to miss the upcoming T20 International series against Bangladesh due to an injury in his lower back.
Hardik Pandya to miss Bangladesh series
If the BCCI sources to be believed Hardik Pandya will soon fly to the United Kingdom for an assessment of the injury. Reportedly the injury was sustained during the Asia Cup in Dubai last September. Now following the stress fractures in the lower back he may remain out of action for a longer period. After the speedster Bumrah, now the Baroda all-rounder has been ruled out of the South Africa Test series.
According to a BCCI source’s version to PTI, “Hardik is also set to go the United Kingdom to consult the same doctor, who had treated him during the first injury post Asia Cup. He is certainly not playing the Bangladesh series but how long he will be out is still not clear. We will know after he comes back from the United Kingdom.”
Absent for the next five months
Germany was another option as well but the board prefers the UK doctors for Pandya. The source also added, “Hardik was left out of Test squad as he didn’t fit in the combinations. But then he is not in Baroda’s Vijay Hazare team led by Krunal (Pandya). Everyone is keeping their fingers crossed and hoping that he doesn’t need to go under the knife. Then he won’t be back before the 2020 IPL.”
So if Pandya has to go for surgery, he will be unavailable for at least five-month. The 25-year-old has scored 532 runs and taken 17 wickets in 11 Tests. In 54 ODIs, he has scored 937 runs and taken 54 wickets. In 40 T20 appearances, he has accumulated 310 runs and 38 wickets. He has proven to be a successful all-rounder for Indian team across the formats in a short span of time. With the T20I World Cup 2020 approaching fast, undoubtedly this becomes concerning for Virat Kohli and the team management.
Stay updated with all the cricketing action, follow Cricadium on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram
