The main question in the Indian team is surrounding the availability of Hardik Pandya. It has been months since the fans have watched the Indian all-rounder wear the national jersey and dominate the game like he used to do. After the series against Afghanistan came to an end, Gautam Gambhir talked about the same.
The Indian team is currently going with Nitish Kumar Reddy as a replacement for Hardik Pandya, but the coach is also looking at the future when both of them will be playing together. Nitish was dominant in the series against Afghanistan, as he finished as the highest wicket-taker and even won the POTM award in the second match.
But when talked about the availability of Hardik Pandya, Gautam Gambhir said, “Hardik at the moment cannot bowl 10 overs, and he hasn’t played a lot of cricket since the IPL, so we don’t want to push him into international cricket because international cricket can be extremely tough on your body as well. So if he plays those India A series, obviously he’ll get some game time as well.”
Hardik Pandya is currently a part of the India A team in the ODI series against Australia A. And if he is able to do well for the team and perform as per his fitness levels, he would be able to make his comeback to the national side soon. It should be noted that he is yet to play a game for the Indian team since the IPL 2026.