Hardik Pandya Set to Join Baroda for Vijay Hazare Trophy Knockout Stage
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Hyderabad, Dec 21 (NationPress) Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya will make his comeback to Baroda's squad for the Vijay Hazare Trophy knockout matches after being left out of the team during the tournament's initial rounds that began on Saturday across multiple locations.
The Baroda Cricket Association (BCA) confirmed that Pandya will join the team during the knockout phase of the ongoing 50-over domestic competition, contingent on the team's progression.
"He will participate from the knockouts; he has notified us," stated Kiran More, a member of the Cricket Improvement Committee (CIC) of the BCA, as reported by Cricbuzz.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the national selection committee, led by Ajit Agarkar, have stressed the importance of players engaging in domestic events unless they receive explicit exemptions. Pandya recently played in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT), where Baroda reached the semifinals. Over the span of seven matches, he accumulated 246 runs and claimed six wickets.
The 31-year-old has been absent from non-T20 matches for more than 14 months, with his last game occurring during the ODI World Cup on October 19 last year against Bangladesh in Pune. An ankle injury sustained in that match resulted in a prolonged absence, and he has since refrained from playing red-ball cricket.
His participation in the one-day domestic tournament could be crucial for securing a spot in next year’s Champions Trophy, particularly as India considers alternatives like Nitish Reddy, an all-rounder from Andhra Pradesh, who has delivered notable performances in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) series in Australia.
Since his injury, Pandya has engaged in 38 T20 matches across international, IPL, and domestic formats but has not competed in other formats. This has sparked rumors that he is concentrating exclusively on T20 cricket. However, Kiran More refuted these claims, affirming, "He participated in all the SMAT matches, and he will play in the 50-over games as well. Baroda had a commendable run in the SMAT, reaching the semifinals, which they lost due to rain in Bengaluru. We hope the team can qualify for the knockout stages of the VHT as well."
Baroda, currently under the captaincy of Krunal Pandya, Hardik’s brother, is competing in Hyderabad as part of Group E, which features Tripura, Kerala, Bengal, Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, and Delhi. The knockout rounds of the Vijay Hazare Trophy are set to take place in Baroda starting January 9, with the final scheduled for January 18.
