Hardik Pandya is all set to miss the white-ball tour of New Zealand after a fresh injury to his right shin ruled him out for at least three weeks. Pandya hasn't
played much this year due to injuries; however, he was named in the India A squad for the One Day series against Australia A from October 6, but the latest injury setback means that he will continue to be away from cricket. A source close to the development confirmed to PTI that Pandya has been advised complete rest by the medical team. "This is very unfortunate, but Hardik's latest scan reports have revealed an injury to his right shin. He has been advised complete rest for a period of two weeks. BCCI's medical panel head Dr Dinshaw Pardiwala has seen his reports and, on his return from Japan, will assess him and decide on when he can start his rehabilitation," a BCCI source tracking COE development told PTI on condition of anonymity. The New Zealand T20I series will begin on October 22, followed by the ODI series, and Pandya's comeback looks unlikely. The BCCI reportedly also wanted Pandya to travel with the Indian team to Japan for the Asian Games; however, ahead of the Afghanistan T20Is, he developed pain in the knee while doing fielding drills, and the scans confirmed an injury. Meanwhile, Pandya might target the Zimbabwe ODIs for return, and perhaps test his fitness in the Vijay Hazare Trophy or Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
'Can't Go Into The World Cup Half Cooked' - Gautam Gambhir
Hardik Pandya is one of the key players for India in ODI cricket, and with the World Cup lined up next year, India wants him fit and firing. But his frequent injuries are also a headache for the Indian management. Speaking on Pandya, coach Gautam Gambhir recently said that India can't afford to go half-cooked in the World Cup and wants Pandya to prove his fitness and rhythm. The New Zealand tour could have provided that platform, but now he'll probably have to wait for the Zimbabwe ODIs."Whether it's Hardik, whether it's Jasprit Bumrah, they are going to be extremely important for us in [southern] Africa," Gambhir said in an interview on JioHotstar. "Very few teams have players [like Hardik] who can bowl ten overs and give you runs from No. 6 or No. 7, that too with such impact. So the focus for us - especially for Hardik, who needs game time as well; he hasn't played a lot of cricket since the IPL - if we talk about 50-over cricket, if we want to play him, he might be short of cricket.
"If he plays a little bit of T20 cricket and then gets to one-day cricket, because game time going into the World Cup is going to be extremely, extremely important. You can't go to the World Cup half-cooked. So you must have enough game time and your rhythm should be good enough, because there are no ifs and buts when it comes to a World Cup. There are no chances to make mistakes.
