IND vs AFG: Hardik Pandya Ruled out of T20I Series Against Afghanistan- Reports: As per the latest reports, Hardik Pandya was ruled out of the three-match T20I series against Afghanistan due to the ankle injury sustained during the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup 2023. He is expected to make a comeback in the IPL 2024.
It is expected that he will return to the Indian Team in the T20I series against Afghanistan, but he is still recovering from the injury. This will be the third consecutive white-ball series missed by Hardik Pandya after the ODI World Cup 2023.
Hardik Pandya didn’t play the white-ball series against Australia and also wasn’t fit during the South Africa Tour, where the Indian team was playing an all-format series. Now, he is out of the Afghanistan tour as well.
Currently, Hardik Pandya is under rehabilitation at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru and is expected to get fit for the IPL 2024 and the ICC Men’s T20I World Cup 2024. Hardik’s recovery was expected to take between six weeks, but now, it is taking a much longer time.
How did Hardik Pandya get injured?
During the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup 2023, the India Team was playing their group-stage match against Bangladesh, and while fielding, Hardik Pandya suffered a right ankle injury. Primarily, He suffered a ligament tear as he was trying to stop the ball.
Hardik is one of the main and leading contenders to be the captain of the Indian Team in the ICC Men’s T20I World Cup 2024 after Rohit Sharma. So, Hardik Pandya will not have any T20I bilateral series before the T20 World Cup 2024, which is not a good thing for the team.
But Hardik Pandya is expected to play the IPL 2024 for Mumbai Indians as recently; MI announced Hardik as their new captain after Rohit Sharma. Still, League cricket is far different from bilateral series and tournaments.
Mumbai Indians traded Hardik from Gujarat Titans before the IPL 2024 Auction. This deal was historic as no trophy-winning captain had been traded, but MI added Hardik to their squad ahead of the upcoming season.
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