“Match fitness is very important,” Ravi Shastri talks about Hardik Pandya’s chances in Champions Trophy 2025
Ravi Shastri wants Hardik Pandya to focus on his fitness and bowl more overs consistently.
Follow Us
Ravi Shastri, Hardik Pandya (Via Imago)
Hardik Pandya is going through a tough time. When Rohit Sharma retired from T20Is after winning the T20 World Cup 2024, everyone expected that Pandya will be the new T20I captain of Team India. He was the vice-captain of the team under Sharma in the T20 World Cup 2024. However, the selectors and the new head coach, Gautam Gambhir, appointed Suryakumar Yadav as the new T20I captain.
The major reason behind Pandya’s snub is definitely his fitness issues. The selectors and Gambhir wanted a captain who could play in every T20I series till the 2026 T20 World Cup in India. Now, former India head coach, Ravi Shastri, wants Pandya to focus on his fitness.
He wants Pandya to play in as many T20I games as possible so that he could prove his match fitness in these matches. Shastri also wants Pandya to bowl more overs consistently. He feels that in ODI matches, he has to bowl eight to 10 overs consistently as bowling just three overs will disrupt the balance of the ODI side.
I think (it's) very important that he continues to play. I believe match fitness is very important. So whatever T20I cricket there is, he should play as much as he can. And if he feels strong and fit, then obviously he comes into the side for the one-day game as well.Ravi Shastri said during the latest edition of The ICC Review ( Via Hindustan Times)
The ICC Champions Trophy will be held in 2025. Hardik Pandya needs to bowl consistently and more overs if he wants to stake a claim in the ODI team. He suffered an ankle injury during the ODI World Cup 2023 game against Bangladesh and was ruled out of the rest of the World Cup.
Hardik Pandya is having a very tough time recently
Pandya was first appointed as the captain in the IPL 2022 season by Gujarat Titans. He led Titans to the IPL title in their very first season. In 2023, he led the team to the final yet again but lost the game against Chennai Super Kings due to Ravindra Jadeja‘s late blitz.
Ahead of IPL 2024, Mumbai Indians made a huge decision to not just bring him as a player but also appoint him as the captain, sacking Rohit Sharma. This did not sit well with the fans all over India. Pandya was abused, booed and jeered in every stadium during the IPL. It affected his mental health but he always played with a smile on his face.
Just ahead of the T20 World Cup 2024, reports of divorce between him and Natasa Stankovic broke out. However, Pandya performed brilliantly with both bat and the ball and was a major reason why Team India won the T20 World Cup 2024. After the World Cup, he and Stankovic announced their divorce and then he was even ‘ignored’ for the captaincy spot of Team India.
In case you have missed:
- Andrew Flintoff touted as possible next England white-ball coach
- “He will faint in South Africa,” Kris Srikkanth issues stern warning for Rohit Sharma
Stay Updated!
Rohit Sarkar
(273 Articles Published)