The former T20I and ODI captain and the premier all-rounder of the Indian side, Hardik Pandya, has not been part of the Baroda side for the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT) 2024-25, which began on December 21 across various venues in the country. The Baroda Cricket Association (BCA) informed the dates of his return to the side for the domestic 50-over tournament.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the national selection committee, under the former all-rounder of the side, Ajit Agarkar, made it very clear that every single cricketer must participate in the domestic competitions if they are not advised or taken out.
“Hardik Pandya will play from the knockouts; he has informed us.” The Cricket Improvement Committee (CIC) of the BCA, Kiran More, addressed this.
The veteran was part of the Baroda side in the recently concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) 2024, where he contributed with both the bat and ball to push the side to reach the semifinals. In seven encounters, the right-handed batter smashed 246 runs and claimed six wickets.
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Hardik Pandya hasn’t featured in a non-T20 game for more than a year. His last appearance in a 50-over clash came during last year’s ODI World Cup at home, where he was injured during the game against Bangladesh at the Maharashtra Cricket Association in Pune before getting ruled out of the rest of the event.
Hardik Pandya skips group stage of VHT 2024-25; Comeback date revealed
He remained in the sidelines from competitive cricket for such a long time, which ceased his return back to the red-ball cricket. The participation of the all-rounder in the one-day domestic championship could play a role in selecting the squad for the upcoming Champions Trophy 2025.
The Indian team management has already found a like-for-like replacement in the longest format in the form of Nitish Kumar Reddy, who has contributed with the bat hugely during the first three of the five-match series in the Border Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 in Australia and could be exposed in the white-ball format during their three ODIs at home against England.
The Andhra all-rounder has excelled in his skills and temperament and could be a bonus for the blue brigade in the future after Hardik Pandya. The latter has featured in 38 T20 matches since the severe injury last year, including international, domestic, and Indian Premier League, but none were more than 20 overs.
This is assumed if the Gujarat-born has only been focusing on the shortest format. His participation in the VHT will depend only if the Baroda side qualifies for the knockout stage of the competition.
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“He participated in all the SMAT matches, and he will play in the 50-over games. Baroda performed well in the SMAT, reaching the semifinals, which they lost due to wet conditions in Bengaluru. Hopefully, the team will make it to the knockouts of the VHT as well.” The former Indian selector addressed.
Hardik Pandya has smashed 1769 runs in 61 ODI innings at an average of 34.01 and a strike rate of more than 100 with the help of 11 half-centuries at the best score of unbeaten 92 runs, besides picking up 84 runs at an economy rate of 5.55. In the case of the List-A format, he has been part of 79 innings with 2103 runs at a strike rate of 105 while collecting 100 wickets at an economy rate of 5.41.
Baroda will host the VHT knockouts from January 09, while the final is scheduled to take place on January 18
