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]Hardik Pandya Injury Update: Indian All-Rounder Targets Quick Return as Team Prepares for Australia Tour
by K D Mishra
Hardik Pandya's exclusion from the ACC Asia Cup final against Pakistan was a major surprise. India replaced him with Shivam Dube, who performed brilliantly, but Pandya's absence was clearly visible. The former T20 captain is a match-winner in the current Indian limited-overs team, and the management will be closely monitoring his recovery.
Pandya has reported to the Board of Control for Cricket in India's Centre of Excellence. According to sources, the fast-bowling all-rounder will arrive in Bengaluru on October 14 and will work with BCCI physios and medical staff to recover from his quadriceps injury in his left leg. The BCCI medical team has advised him to rest, and a decision on his future course of action will be made now.
Given the skill set Hardik Pandya possesses, he is difficult to beat. Although he has stopped playing red-ball cricket due to injury, he is a match-winner in both T20 and ODI cricket. He can play multiple roles with the ball, bat almost anywhere, and is one of India's best finishers. Now, India will miss him in the upcoming three ODIs and five T20Is against Australia, starting October 19th.
This will be a great opportunity for the Indian team to test itself without Pandya. Nitish Kumar Reddy has been selected as a capable fast-bowling all-rounder. He is now a player across all three formats, and has been selected for both the ODIs and T20Is against Australia. Shivam Dube is another T20I option, who will certainly be included in the squad after his successful performance in the 2025 Asia Cup.
🚨 GOOD NEWS FOR TEAM INDIA 🚨
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) October 14, 2025
Hardik Pandya to reach BCCI CoE today - he is likely to be ready within 4 weeks, more clarity on timelines this week. [Sahil Malhotra from TOI] pic.twitter.com/UCe1qi6pNo
After Australia, India's next limited-overs series will be a home series against South Africa. The Proteas will be on a 35-day tour of India, playing two Tests, three ODIs, and five T20Is. Pandya is most likely to be fit for this match. A major T20 match winner.
Hardik, who is struggling away from the field, is the leading run-scorer between the 16th and 20th overs in T20 International cricket. Pandya has scored 1068 runs in the 16-20 overs format in T20 International matches. His strike rate during this period has been 174.23. Virat Kohli has scored 1032 runs during this period at a strike rate of 192.54. Hardik Pandya has played 11 Tests, 94 ODIs, and 120 T20 Internationals for Team India so far.
In Test matches, he has scored 532 runs at an average of 31.29 and has also taken 17 wickets. In ODIs, Hardik has scored 1904 runs at an average of 32.82 and taken 91 wickets at an average of 35.50. Whereas in T20 International matches, he has 1860 runs (27.35 average) and 98 wickets (26.58 average) to his name.