Hardik Pandya is at the top of his career right now. Who would have thought, right? After he was carried off the ground on a stretcher, Pandya has clinched an IPL trophy with a team that no one even gave a chance, returned to international cricket with a bang, put out some match-winning performances and is now touted to be the next Indian white-ball captain.
Phew! That is some turnaround. But if international cricket has taught us anything, it is anything but certain. Hardik looks fit and is raring to go. He gets occasional cramps, and that scares every Indian fan out there, but hey, every player goes through that.
But wasn't that the case with Jadeja and Bumrah too a while back? Both looked fit and turned out match-winning performances more often than not, but once they got injured, it left the team in a mess. Axar Patel and Arshdeep Singh took care of business to some extent, but it is only fair to think what would have been the result if both stalwarts had played the T20 World Cup in Australia.
Now, what if Hardik Pandya gets injured? BCCI seems to be making all their plans around him. He has been elevated to vice-captaincy and looks like a sure-shot option to be the next Indian captain in the white-ball format. From what we have seen of Hardik thus far, he is injury prone. Even if leave out captaincy for a bit, does Team India have an alternative to what Hardik provides with both bat and ball? The plain answer is no.
The only two players that come to mind are Shivam Dube and the young Raj Angad Bawa. One hasn't been bled enough at the international stage, and the 2nd is still raw. Venkatesh Iyer is another option, but since he is a top order player, it would cause more problems. It would only be prudent for BCCI and the team management to prepare in case Pandya isn't available. The team management and selectors need to be on constant watch for all-rounders that have the potential to match Hardik.
Raj Angad Bawa's T20 Numbers
- Innings: 6
- Runs: 89
- Highest: 40*
- Wickets: 3
- Economy: 8.60
Shivam Dube's T20 Numbers
- Innings: 90
- Runs: 1495
- Highest: 95*
- Wickets: 41
- Economy: 8.87
It would not only prove a wise step if an injury strikes but would also make that spot within the team a bit more competitive, which right now, is dominated by Pandya.
Also Read: Arshdeep Singh's Numbers for Team India | Detailed analysis
Doing so would only help Team Indian in the long run and won't throw the entire team into a mess if anything unfortunate happens.
