Four days after the ODI World Cup, on November 23, India will play Australia in a five-match Twenty20 International series. Hardik Pandya will not be in the Indian side for this series. The T20I series lineup for India will be selected on November 15, the day Rohit Sharma’s team plays New Zealand in the Mumbai World Cup semifinals, according to information obtained by ESPNcricinfo.
It is understood that the BCCI medical staff recommended six to eight weeks of recuperation for Hardik, who tore a ligament in his left ankle during the World Cup league encounter against Bangladesh on October 19. At first, the medical staff was hopeful that Hardik would be well enough to participate in India’s final league game on November 12 against the Netherlands. But the swelling didn’t go down, so Hardik hurt himself during the fitness tests he had to take before being eliminated from the competition and replaced by Prasidh Krishna.
It is anticipated that most of the World Cup roster will be rested, with the majority of the players who competed in the October Asian Games likely to be included in the Australia T20Is side. Ruturaj Gaikwad was the team captain for India, who has taken home the gold medal from the Hangzhou competition. That team included players like Jitesh Sharma, Rinku Singh, Tilak Varma, and Yashasvi Jaiswal.
The senior Indian team’s workload during the last two months, during which they participated in the Asia Cup and the World Cup, will be taken into consideration by the selection panel, which is chaired by former all-rounder Ajit Agarkar.
Additionally, it is known that VVS Laxman will lead the T20I team against Australia. What the BCCI intends to do regarding Rahul Dravid, whose two-year contract expires following the World Cup, could not be established.
