Despite being given multiple chances, Hardik Pandya did not fulfil his duties as an all-rounder duties as he concentrated on his batting and hardly did any bowling be it in the Indian Premier League (IPL) or even at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2021.
The change in him came after he underwent back surgery and since then has been suffering to find his form. In fact, seeing a dip even in his batting performance, many wanted to cricketer to be axed.
Now, it has been learnt that the player has asked the national selectors to not consider him for a while as he wants to focus on regaining full fitness. According to ESPNcricinfo, Pandya is said to be eyeing a return to full-time bowling and has asked the selectors to give him time for the same.
Pandya was not selected for the recent home T20I series against New Zealand at home, which India won 3-0, under the new captaincy of Rohit Sharma and guidance of new coach Rahul Dravid.
It is now understood that he would also not be in consideration for the upcoming tour of South Africa, which is uncertain to happen after the emergence of a new COVID-19 variant in the African nations.
As far as Pandya’s fitness is concerned, before the T20 World Cup in the UAE, he was continuously monitored during the IPL. He did not bowl in any of the 12 games he was a part of across both legs of the tournament for Mumbai Indians (MI). In fact, the last time the all-rounder bowled in the IPL was in 2019 and had played the 2020 edition only as a pure batter.
