Hardik Pandya's Comeback Hits Another Setback Ahead of Afghanistan T20Is
Hardik Pandya’s international comeback has hit yet another bump in the road.
The India all-rounder, who had been building steadily towards a return at the BCCI Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru, has developed a late leg niggle that now leaves him highly doubtful for the three-match T20I series against Afghanistan starting September 13 in New Delhi.
A comeback stalls… again
By all accounts, Pandya was close. Very close.
TimesofIndia.com has learnt that he had been “ticking the right boxes” in training, operating at full intensity and showing no visible discomfort. The plan was simple: clear the final fitness checks at the CoE, report fully fit, and push for selection when the national selectors meet this week to pick the squad.
Then the leg flared up.
A source tracking developments said Pandya has been advised to stop bowling because of discomfort in the leg. He is expected to resume in due course, but the Afghanistan series has come too soon for him to hit the demanding fitness benchmarks the CoE requires before issuing an all-clear. With the ball, he has been told to pause. With the bat and in general movement, there has been no major concern, but that is not enough for a player whose value hinges on being a genuine all-rounder.
The timing could hardly be worse. The selectors will be briefed shortly on the fitness of all players rehabbing in Bengaluru, and Pandya’s name, once pencilled in, now sits in doubt.
A long stretch on the sidelines
Pandya, 32, has not played any competitive cricket since May 24, when he last turned out for Mumbai Indians in the IPL. His previous appearance for India came even earlier, on March 8, in the T20 World Cup final.
Since that night, he has missed every white-ball assignment: the home series against Afghanistan and the tours of Ireland and England. Each time, the narrative has been about careful management, structured rehab, and a measured path back to full fitness. Each time, the wait has grown longer.
This is not the first late setback either. Before the ODI series against Afghanistan, Pandya suffered a relapse in the form of a low-grade quadriceps sprain. Then too, he was reportedly at peak fitness, training strongly, only for injury to intervene at the last moment. The pattern is becoming uncomfortably familiar.
For a player who once symbolised India’s new-age, fearless T20 identity, the stop-start nature of his recent career has become a central storyline.
Others step forward as Pandya waits
While Pandya’s progress has stalled again, there is better news elsewhere in the all-rounder department.
Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar are understood to be progressing well in their own bids to be available for the Afghanistan T20Is. Both offer balance to the side in different ways, and their improving fitness will give the selectors some room to manoeuvre if Pandya is eventually ruled out.
On the fast-bowling front, Jasprit Bumrah remains a “touch-and-go” case for the Afghanistan series. His participation is still uncertain, but his broader trajectory remains positive, with the pacer described as on track for the Asian Games.
So India may enter the Afghanistan T20Is without their premier all-rounder and with doubts over their spearhead quick, even as the next generation of multi-skilled cricketers nudges closer to centre stage.
For Pandya, the story is more personal. Another rehab, another near-miss, another delay. The question now is not just when he returns, but how long India can keep planning around a player whose body keeps interrupting his own script.
