Mumbai Indians captain and all-rounder Hardik Pandya was expected to make a comeback in the T20I series against Afghanistan after being ruled out of international cricket since the IPL 2026 season. Hardik, who was retained for Rs 16.35 crore by Nita Ambani’s Mumbai Indians ahead of IPL 2026, injured his quadriceps before the ODI series against Afghanistan in June this year.
Since then Hardik has been recuperating at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru, having shifted his base from Mumbai to the city. According to a TOI report, Hardik was making good progress at the CoE and was expected to test his fitness in the Afghanistan series.
However, the 32-year-old all-rounder has suffered a fresh setback just days before the BCCI selectors will pick the squad for the Afghanistan T20I series. “Hardik Pandya was operating on full intensity without any discomfort but he has been advised to pause bowling due to discomfort in his leg. He will resume soon, but the Afghanistan series is too close to reach the required fitness levels. Batting and movement-wise, there wasn’t any significant issue but the CoE needs to be completely convinced before giving an all-clear,” a BCCI source was quoted as saying by TOI website.
The last of Hardik Pandya’s 138 appearances for Team India in T20I cricket came in March in the T20 World Cup 2026 final vs New Zealand. Since then he has missed ODI series against Afghanistan in June followed by white-ball series in Ireland and England as well as T20I series in Zimbabwe.
Nitish Kumar Reddy, Washington Sundar recovery on track
The report also added that all-rounders Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar are making good progress in their recovery. It will be interesting to see if the selectors gamble with bringing back Reddy and Sundar for the Afghanistan series ahead of the Asian Games 2026.
However, Hardik Pandya’s Mumbai Indians teammate Jasprit Bumrah is still to get clearance from the CoE to return to international cricket. While Bumrah is being preserved for ODI and Test cricket keeping in mind the ICC ODI World Cup 2027 next year, the BCCI selectors were keen on check on his fitness in T20I games ahead of the longer version.