Former India coach Ravi Shastri has made a bold claim on Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya and his future as a Test player. Pandya has grown into being one of Team India’s core players in white-ball cricket. But his return to the longest format of cricket seems a distinct dream because of his fitness issues over the past few years.
Pandya last played Test cricket in 2018 when the Men in Blue were touring England. But since then, his back injuries have kept him away from action and more specifically red-ball cricket. The 29-year-old has managed to make a big comeback from his injury and emerged as a future India captain in white-ball cricket.
Addressing these concerns, Ravi Shastri, while speaking to The Week, expressed how Pandya’s body may not be able to sustain the rigours of Test cricket and hence he should focus on white-ball cricket where the 29-year-old could become captain of the Indian team. "Let's be clear. His body (Hardik) cannot cope with Test cricket. After the World Cup, I feel he should take over captaincy in white-ball cricket. Rohit should lead India in the World Cup, no question there," he said.
Further in the interview, Ravi Shastri also had a message for the Indian selectors, who seemingly focus more on white-ball cricket and tournaments like the IPL. “Because of the IPL, you see an abundance of high-quality, young, white-ball players. But, one should not get carried away by that and think they should be automatic red-ball choices,” he said.
Shastri wants the selectors to put more emphasis on red-ball records and then pick players, instead of selecting players just on white-ball numbers.
“No, I would rather see the red-ball record. I would sit with the selectors and find out more about who the [red-ball performances] were against, in what conditions, what are their strengths, what is the temperament of the bloke like,” he added.
