Selectors ask Hardik Pandya to prove his fitness in Ranji Trophy

India’s star all-rounder Hardik Pandya is currently recovering from the back injury he sustained during the Asia Cup. He has already missed the flight to Australia for the recently concluded T20I series and the upcoming Tests. But he is expected to get fit for the three-match ODI series which is set to commence on January 12. The all-rounder, however, has been told by the selectors to prove his fitness now in the ongoing Ranji Trophy.

Pandya was injured during the game against Pakistan and has been out of the action since then. Recently, he also shared his rehabilitation stint on social media and was also picked for the three One-Dayers against New Zealand A. But it seems that the 25-year-old is yet to recover completely from his injury which has ruled him out of those matches which were slated to start from December 7.

Likely to play for Baroda in Ranji

According to ESPN Cricinfo, Hardik Pandya is now likely to play the sixth round of the ongoing season of Ranji Trophy for Baroda against Mumbai which is scheduled to be played from December 14. He last played the first-class game during the 2016-2017 season of the tournament and it will be interesting to see how he fares in this game. It is surprising that the selectors have told him to play a four-day game when he will be next playing the ODI series in Australia.

With the latest instructions given to him, it seems that the selectors are considering Hardik to add in the Test squad if he manages to go unscathed in the Ranji Trophy game. When the sixth round of the competition concludes, India will have played two out of the four Test matches in Australia and with the third game to begin on December 26, Boxing Day Test, Hardik might get picked.

As of now, Hardik Pandya will not be a part of India A squad for the upcoming limited-overs fixtures against New Zealand A and will soon turn out for Baroda.

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