Hardik Pandya asked to prove match fitness in Ranji Trophy clash

Sudhir Gupta 13:18 30/11/2018
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  • Hardik Pandya is courting controversy.

    India all-rounder Hardik Pandya has been asked to prove his fitness in a Ranji Trophy clash as he steps up his return from a back injury.

    According to a report from Sportstar, Pandya has been ruled out of the limited-overs leg of India Aโ€™s ongoing tour of New Zealand and has instead been asked to focus on the Ranji Trophy.

    The 25-year-old was initially called up to the India A squad for their unofficial ODI clashes against New Zealand A which get underway from December 7.

    However, after a recent visit to the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru, Pandya was found to be unfit to travel to New Zealand with the all-rounder said to require a further one week to regain his fitness.

    Pandya could now feature for Baroda in their Ranji Trophy clash against Mumbai which gets underway on December 14.

    The all-rounder has been sidelined with a back injury since breaking down in the Asia Cup held in the UAE in September and was not picked for Indiaโ€™s squad for the tour of Australia in either of the three formats.

    However, according to the report, Pandya could be in the frame for a late call up to the India squad for the final two Tests against Australia should he prove his match fitness in the coming days.

    The three-match ODI series against the Aussies will be a more realistic shot for Pandya to make his India comeback. The 50-over clashes get underway after the completion of the Test series with the first ODI taking place at Sydney on January 12.

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