Gautam Gambhir asks Hardik Pandya to play Vijay Hazare Trophy to prove bowling fitness for ODIs - Reports

Gautam Gambhir’s tenure as India head coach will begin with white-ball tour of Sri Lanka.

In a significant development, newly appointed Indian cricket team head coach Gautam Gambhir has asked all-rounder Hardik Pandya to play in the Vijay Hazare Trophy to prove his bowling fitness for One-Day Internationals, according to reports.

Gambhir, who was recently appointed as the new head coach of the Indian side, is all set to start his first assignment with the team, when the Men in Blue tour Sri Lanka for three T20Is and as many ODIs. The series will be played from July 27 to August 7.

On July 18, 2024, the BCCI announced squads for the upcoming white-ball tour against Sri Lanka. Suryakumar Yadav was named as the T20I skipper, whereas Rohit Sharma will lead the ODI side.

Interestingly, youngster Shubman Gill will serve as the deputy in both series. The three-match T20I series will be played from July 27 to July 30, whereas the ODI series will start from August 2 and end on August 7.

Head coach Gambhir wants Hardik to bowl his full quota of overs in ODIs

The Indian all-rounder Hardik hasn’t played any ODI cricket since the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023. His last ODI match was against Bangladesh, where he suffered an ankle injury while bowling.

The injury kept him out of action for several months. The star cricketer then proved his fitness by playing the whole Indian Premier League 2024 tournament for the Mumbai Indians. 

Hardik was then named in the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 squad, where he played a huge role in helping the Men in Blue lift the title. The all-rounder was also the vice-captain of the Indian cricket team during the tournament.

However, while picking captains for the upcoming T20I series against Sri Lanka, Suryakumar Yadav edged past Hardik to become India’s T20I captain for the Lanka tour. It was understood that Hardik’s fitness and struggle to remain injury-free cost him the captaincy, as BCCI selectors were looking for a long-term option.

According to a latest report in the Hindustan Times, BCCI selectors communicated with Hardik that they were looking beyond him for captaincy. The selectors told all-rounder that they would still look at him as a great fast-bowling all-rounder.

The report further added that head coach Gambhir also asked Hardik to play the Vijay Hazare Trophy and prove his bowling fitness to bowl his full quota of overs (10 overs) in ODIs.

“Hardik was also reminded by Gambhir on the call, that he was looking forward to see him bowl his full quota in ODIs,” a BCCI official told Hindustan Times.

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