The announcement on Saturday by the International Cricket Council (ICC) that all-rounder Hardik Pandya would miss the rest of the competition dealt a severe blow to India’s undefeated World Cup 2023 campaign. The choice to replace Hardik is fast bowler Prasidh Krishna, who just made a comeback to the Indian team after a year-long injury setback.
The popular Indian all-rounder hobbled off the field and did not return to the game after he twisted his ankle and fell awkwardly during the match against Bangladesh in Pune on October 19. After suffering an injury, he was ruled out of India’s next three games against England, Sri Lanka, and New Zealand. India qualified for the semifinals on Thursday, and the BCCI and team management were confident that Hardik, who has since been receiving treatment and rehabilitation at the NCA, would be fit. However, it has since come to light that Hardik has not recovered in time to play in the remaining games of the campaign.
“Pandya hurt his left ankle while bowling during India’s World Cup match against Bangladesh in Pune last month and it has now been confirmed that the 30-year-old has failed to recover in time to part of the rest of the campaign,” the International Cricket Council said in a statement.
When a ligament rupture was taken into consideration, Hardik’s injury—which was first thought to be little more than an ankle sprain—took a catastrophic turn. However, considering it was a Grade 1 injury, a 10-to 15-day recovery time was anticipated. It’s evident that the harm done to Hardik’s injury is more serious than first believed. The news is likely to be devastating for India since, in addition to being a potent batsman in his finishing position, Hardik provided the team with the ideal balance by being available as their sixth bowling option. India’s decision to add Mohammed Shami and Suryakumar Yadav to their starting XI in lieu of Hardik has the potential to further compensate for his absence.
His substitute In 19 ODI and T20I matches for India, Prasidh has taken 33 wickets. After suffering his own lumbar stress fracture, which kept him out of action for over a year, he returned in the two Twenty20 Internationals against Ireland, taking 2/32 and 2/29. As a member of the Indian team for the Asia Cup, Prasidh participated in one match against Bangladesh, scoring one wicket. He then appeared in two One-Day Internationals against Australia, scoring two wickets in Indore (2/56) and one in Rajkot (1/45), including the removal of David Warner.
After initially being left off of India’s World Cup roster, Prasidh went on to play for Karnataka in the country’s premier domestic T20 tournament, the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. In this competition, he has taken wickets in four matches so far: one against Madhya Pradesh, one against Nagaland, one against Uttar Pradesh, and two against Tripura. But it doesn’t seem realistic that Prasidh will get to participate considering India’s incredible seven-match winning run and Mohammed Shami’s 14-wicket performance in only three games.