India’s star all-rounder Hardik Pandya had a stellar run in the ongoing 2022 edition of the Indian Premier League with debutants Gujarat Titans. Returning to competitive cricket after a long injury lay-off but impressed one and all with his stunning performances. He led his side from the front and guided the team to a memorable title triumph in only their maiden IPL outing.
Hardik Pandya To Lead Team India In T20I Series vs Ireland
After leading the Gujarat Titans to their maiden title win, Hardik Pandya is all set to lead the Indian cricket team in the much-awaited T20I series against Ireland, which is all set to kickstart from tonight. The Hardik-led side will play two T20Is against Ireland.
Though, Pandya is touted to becoming dispensable to the white-ball squad of Team India, former Indian opener Wasim Jaffer still feels that Hardik is far from making a return to the purest format of the game. Ahead of the series opener, Wasim Jaffer explained why he doesn’t see Hardik Pandya making a return to red-ball cricket soon.
Jaffer explained Why Pandya Is Far From Returning To Test Format
Jaffer was asked whether Pandya can return to Test cricket after becoming a strong Indian captaincy option in white-ball cricket. He said:
“Hardik bowling 15 to 18 overs a day, you don’t see that happening [due to] the kind of back-surgery he had. Will he bat at four or five? I don’t see that happening in red-ball cricket,”
He added: “So in that sense, he’s far away from getting into the red-ball circuit. So I think if we just leave him bowling four overs or at max 10 overs in One-Dayers and batting at four, five, or six, it will help him prolong his career,”
Team India squad for the Ireland series:
Hardik Pandya (Captain), Bhuvneshwar Kumar (vice-captain), Ishan Kishan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sanju Samson, Suryakumar Yadav, Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Hooda, Rahul Tripathi, Dinesh Karthik (wicket-keeper), Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, Ravi Bishnoi, Harshal Patel, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik
