ICC T20 World Cup 2021: Hardik Pandya Bowls At The Nets After Clearing Fitness Drills: Reports

As per reports in Indian Express Indian all-rounder, Hardik Pandya has resumed bowling in the nets after clearing his fitness drills on Wednesday. He went through the drills and then bowled at the nets under the supervision of team physio Nitin Patel and assistant trainer Soham Desai ahead of India’s next game against New Zealand.

He played as a specialist batsman in the IPL and even in India’s T20 World Cup campaign opener against Pakistan.

Hardik Pandya resuming his bowling is good news for the team who has been short of a sixth bowling option in the global event. With him bowling again, it gives Virat Kohli options to keep his bowlers rotating in the middle overs.

Pandya last bowled a couple of overs in the T20I series against Sri Lanka. His IPL skipper Rohit Sharma said that he was close to regaining full fitness after Mumbai’s last match in the IPL.

“In terms of his (Hardik) bowling, the physios, trainers are working. He hasn’t bowled a single ball yet. We wanted to take one match at a time and see where he stands,” Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma had said after the team’s last match in the IPL.

Hardik Pandya Injured His Shoulder Against Pakistan

Pandya’s fitness has been a constant debate ever since his inclusion in India’s T20 World Cup squad. The BCCI named Shardul Thakur as a back up option for him axing Axar Patel who was added first in the main squad.

It will be interesting now to see if Hardik Pandya retains his place in the XI or Shardul replaces him. Meanwhile, the India-New Zealand contest holds a lot of meaning for both teams now that they lost to Pakistan in their respective opening game.

The winner of this game stays in the race for the semifinals while the loser will be close to getting eliminated from the tournament. Meanwhile, Pandya was hit on his shoulder in the match against Pakistan. Captain Virat Kohli spoke about his importance in the team despite his failure with the bat.