IND vs SA | Was trying to be fully fit quickly but that didn’t work out, reveals Hardik Pandya
BCCI
Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya who is expected to make his comeback to the Indian squad in the upcoming series against South Africa admits that he was trying to get back to full fitness quickly but that did not work out. The Baroda lad had to deal with a lot of mental pressure during rehab.
Pandya last played an international match in September 2019. If he is selected for the first ODI that will be played in Dharamsala on Thursday, it will be his first ODI match since July 2019. Incidentally, his last game in the Indian colours also came against South African, following which he has missed for most parts of the last year. In an interview with team-mate Yuzvendra Chahal, on Chahal TV, Pandya spoke about the mental struggle of being on the sidelines. He also admitted that he was trying to get back to full fitness quickly but that did not work out.
"I missed this atmosphere the most in these last six months, playing for the country and the feeling you get wearing the team's colours. That had become a mental challenge and there were a lot of setbacks. I was trying to get back to full fitness quickly but that did not work out and a lot of mental pressure came at the time. But touchwood, everything went fine, the rehabilitation went well and a lot of people helped me," revealed Pandya, reported Times Of India.
Hardik was expected to return for India's recently concluded tour of New Zealand but was pulled out of the A tour before that, with the BCCI saying that he was yet to recover fully. He, however, proved his fitness before this series during an invitational T20 tournament in Mumbai where he scored two centuries, the second of which was an unbeaten 55-ball 158, including 20 sixes.
"It was important. I had not played anything for six and a half months. I wanted to make an international comeback, so it was very important for my confidence. No matter how much you practice, the match situation is always different,” expressed the Baroda cricketer.
"So I just kept on playing, my confidence kept improving and the sixes were coming off well. I thought if they are coming off well, why should I stop and I kept going. But I never thought that I want to hit 20 sixes in an innings," concluded Pandya.
