"...Otherwise I Won't": Hardik Pandya Reveals Indian Team 'Comeback Condition'
Hardik Pandya opened up about his road to recovery and how he was determined to come back as a bowler when he eventually made his return to the national side.
Hardik Pandya is one of the most valuable all-rounder options for Indian cricket considering his ability to bat in the middle order and provide a pace bowling option to his side. However, questions rose about his ability to bowl his full quota following a prolonged injury spell in 2020. Pandya completed his recovery and even proved his mettle in the Indian Premier League (IPL) where he excelled with both the bat and the ball while leading Gujarat Titans to their maiden title in their debut season. The all-rounder opened up about his road to recovery and how he was determined to come back as a bowler when he eventually made his return to the national side.
"I went back and I was just spending time with myself. I had to figure out what exactly is it that I am aspiring to be. For my bowling, I told the guys in the Indian team that if I come back, I will do so as an all-rounder otherwise I won't. And I was fine with it because that was the challenge thrown at me. To be honest, I was very happy with the fact that if I don't play, I was ok," Pandya was quoted as saying by Jio Cinema.
Kuldeep Yadav and Ravindra Jadeja masterminded the rout of an abject West Indies team as India romped to a five-wicket victory with more than 27 overs to spare.
Beaten 1-0 in the preceding two-Test series, the home team were brushed aside for just 114 off 23 overs after being put in as they appeared completely at sea in trying to cope especially with variations offered by Yadav's wrist-spin.
India were always on course for the modest target thanks to Ishan Kishan's belligerent 52, although the loss of three wickets near the end of the chase took some of the gloss off the win.
In what was clearly a bit of an audition for younger batting aspirants ahead of the World Cup, champion batsman Virat Kohli did not feature while captain Rohit Sharma only appeared at the fall of the fifth wicket.
(With AFP inputs)
Hardik Pandya
India Cricket Team
Gujarat Titans