Hardik Pandya suffers injury scare before 1st T20I

• Hardik Pandya injury scare; skipped India practice before South Africa T20I.
• Shubman Gill returns from neck injury; India eyes opening with Gill, Sharma.
• Markram captains South Africa; Nortje returns for the first time since the T20 WC.

India’s preparations for the opening T20I against South Africa in Cuttack have been hit by an injury scare to star all-rounder Hardik Pandya. Just a week

after receiving fitness clearance, Hardik, returning from a two-month break due to a left quadriceps injury, skipped India’s final training session on Monday, raising concerns ahead of the five-match series.

Hardik sustained his injury during the 2025 Asia Cup and has been carefully managed by the BCCI ever since. He played two Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy matches for Baroda last week, bowling full spells before leaving early to join the national team in Cuttack. With the 2026 T20 World Cup a few months away, India is relying heavily on Hardik, especially after Nitish Kumar Reddy's poor returns. 

On Sunday evening, the all-rounder trained individually at the Barabati Stadium. He went through an extended warm-up, followed by a few bowling drills with throwdown specialists Nuwan Seneviratne and Dayanand Garani. However, after just 20 minutes of bowling, he looked uncomfortable and received treatment for another 20 minutes before resuming batting practice. Meanwhile, on Monday, just a day before the 1st T20I, he was absent from India’s final training session. According to reports, Hardik skipped practice only as a precaution and is not carrying any serious niggle.

Shubman Gill returns from a neck injury

While Hardik rested, Shubman Gill, also returning from a neck injury, batted for nearly two hours in the nets, facing Jasprit Bumrah and local bowlers. Skipper Suryakumar Yadav was seen playing the spinners, while Jitesh Sharma and Washington Sundar worked extensively on power-hitting. Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma even rolled their arms over for extended spells.

Interestingly, Barabati Stadium will host its first-ever match on a red-soil surface. Expected to provide bounce and pace, similar to the Wankhede, the pitch could create a high-scoring contest under lights. Notably, India has lost both T20Is they’ve played here against South Africa.

India are likely to open with Gill and Abhishek Sharma, while Sanju Samson may miss out in the XI. For South Africa, Aiden Markram returns to captaincy, and Anrich Nortje is set for his first international appearance since the 2024 T20 World Cup final.