Senior all-rounder Hardik Pandya has encountered a new injury that will keep him off the cricket field for at least three weeks. This setback includes missing the upcoming white ball tour to New Zealand.
Pandya was initially expected to return to play by September 20, leading to his selection for India A in the One-Day series against Australia A, which begins on October 6. However, recent medical scans have shown that he has injured his right shin. A source from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) revealed that Dr. Dinshaw Pardiwala, head of the BCCI medical team, is reviewing his reports and will recommend rehabilitation once he returns from Japan.
The T20I series in New Zealand kicks off on October 22, followed by an ODI series, but it is highly unlikely that Pandya will be fit in time for those matches.
It has been reported that the BCCI had plans for Pandya to join the squad heading to Japan for the Asian Games, with his passport already taken care of for visa purposes. Unfortunately, just prior to the Afghanistan T20 series, Pandya experienced a sudden sharp pain in his knee during fielding practice. Although he initially decided to rest for a few days, when he was on the verge of receiving medical clearance, the pain returned, leading to his current diagnosis.
Now 32, Pandya has been training in Bengaluru since the end of the Indian Premier League (IPL) and is currently at the Centre of Excellence. However, over the last four months, he has faced multiple minor injuries while preparing for various matches, making his return to competitive cricket challenging.
With the New Zealand series on the horizon, his immediate future in cricket hinges on regaining fitness in time for the Zimbabwe ODIs or possibly the domestic tournaments like the Vijay Hazare Trophy or the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
