Sign In
By signing in or creating an account, you agree with Associated Broadcasting Company's Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
By signing in or creating an account, you agree with Associated Broadcasting Company's Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.
New Delhi: Star Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya is set to make his much-anticipated comeback in competitive cricket with the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Pandya would be representing Baroda with the tournament starting on November 26 in Hyderabad.
The all-rounder has been recovering from a quadriceps injury and is currently training at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru. The Indian player, who has recovered well, is set to be match-fit by them as there are another 14 days for the SMAT to start. If any unforeseen circumstances do not stop him, he will play in the first match of the tournament.
Additionally if his fitness does not come in between, Pandya will straight away travel to Hyderabad after getting a Return to Play (RTP) from the CoE. The domestic T20 tournament will see Baroda playing their matches in Hyderabad starting in a fortnight. This can also give the Indian all-rounder a chance to play at least one competitive game before India's ODI series against South Africa starting on November 30.
The flamboyant Indian player suffered a left quadricep during an Asia Cup clash against Sri Lanka which kept him out of the final clash against arch-rivals Pakistan. Since almost two months, he has not participated in any sort of competitive cricket. He went on to miss the white balls series in Australia but now looks on course to play white-ball matches against South Africa.
The 32-year-old cricketer has been working hard in Bengaluru for the past few weeks, getting close to match fitness. After the two-match test series starting November 14 gets over, India will play three ODI games against the Proteas starting November 30. The focus will then shift to the five T20I matches which start on December 9 in Cuttack.
After going down in the ODI series against Australia, India will look to win the 50-over matches against the Proteas, which will also include Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.
