Due to an ankle injury, star all-rounder Hardik Pandya will miss the balance of the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, which is currently taking place, dealing a serious blow to India. He suffered an ankle injury trying to stop the ball during the match in Pune between Bangladesh and India. Notably, he hasn’t played in any of the games since. Pacer Prasidh Krishna has been called up to the Indian squad to replace the all-rounder before of their match against South Africa.
A representative of the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) spoke candidly about the all-rounder’s ailment and the board’s choice of a substitute. The official continued, saying that although the 30-year-old had only started training again, the swelling surrounding his injury prevented him from competing.
As was previously stated, Pandya merely had a small rip and has no fractures. He had started training again, but all of a sudden his left ankle started to swell significantly, making him unable to bowl. This is not an injury that would respond well to injectable therapy. He can’t continue doing skills training for a while because of the significant edema that returned on Thursday, a BCCI official was cited by HT as saying.
India turned to specialized players in Hardik’s absence, and they now have a reliable starting lineup. All-around players Shardul Thakur and Hardik have been replaced by Mohammed Shami and Suryakumar Yadav, who have developed into a potent duo over the past few games. Adding Prasidh as a backup to the explosive Mohammed Siraj, Mohammed Shami, and Jasprit Bumrah pace trio seems like a smart move for team India. Furthermore, it seems that the selectors were uninterested in adding an all-around player because Shardul Thakur and R Ashwin are already in the team.
The Men in Blue and the Proteas will play at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday, November 5. They will play their final league-stage encounter in Bengaluru, against the Netherlands, following this one.
