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Prior to the T20I series between India and Bangladesh that begins next month, Indian cricketer Hardik Pandya began his preparations. Cricket fans are intrigued, nevertheless, by the fact that he was spotted bowling with the red ball. India will host Bangladesh for a two-match Test series beginning on Thursday, September 19, ahead of the three-match T20I series in October.
Pandya, who hasn't played the game's longest format since September 2018, was left off of the BCCI's 16-man team when they revealed their lineup for the opening Test in Chennai last week. The Baroda all-round player was not selected for any of the four teams competing in the Duleep Trophy 2024, as was to be expected.
Hardik Pandya spotted with a red ball:
— Aditya Desai (@aditya_three) September 12, 2024
To the surprise of the cricket community, the 30-year-old bowled with a red ball during a practice session even though he was neither selected nor required to play in the game's longer version. Over his 11 Test matches, Pandya has amassed 532 runs at 31.29 and 17 wickets at 31.06 for India. There are no hard rumors indicating that the Choryasi native wants to return to red-ball cricket. Fans have started to conjecture, nevertheless.
But Pandya is still a crucial component of India's white-ball team. In the 86 One-Day Internationals he has played so far, he has amassed 1,769 runs and claimed 84 wickets. Pandya, meanwhile, has amassed 1,523 runs and claimed 86 wickets in 102 Twenty20 Internationals. He bowled a terrific final over in the match against South Africa, which contributed significantly to India's victory in the T20 World Cup in June.
Following the victory over the Proteas, Rohit Sharma announced his retirement from the Twenty20 international format, and the flamboyant player was in the race to take over as captain of India. But in the end, Suryakumar Yadav won the race over the all-rounder. On October 06, 09, and 12, India will play Bangladesh in three Twenty20 Internationals. Gwalior will host the first game, and Delhi will host the second. Pandya will play a key role for the Men in Blue in the series, and the third and final meeting takes place in Hyderabad.
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