All eyes will be on Hardik Pandya with the star all-rounder set to lead Mumbai Indians (MI) in the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Hardik, who has been out of action since October last year, had injured his ankle during the ODI World Cup game against Bangladesh in Pune. However, the all-rounder recently began his preparations for the IPL and was seen training in Baroda with his brother Krunal Pandya and MI teammate Ishan Kishan.

Despite his recent absence from the field, Hardik was awarded with a Grade A contract by BCCI in their annual player retainership.

On the other hand, Kishan and Shreyas Iyer‘s annual contracts were terminated by the BCCI reportedly after both players decided to skip Ranji Trophy games for their respective states, despite being declared fit.

Hardik has been a regular for Team India in white-ball cricket, but the selection committee has been reluctant to put him in the Test squad, as his body cannot withstand the workload of longest formate of the game.

Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan, however, feels that if Hardik doesn’t want to play Test cricket, he should atleast feature in domestic white ball games when he is not with the national team.

Pathan suggested that the criteria of selection should be same for everyone.

“They are talented cricketers, both Shreyas and Ishan. Hoping they bounce back and come back stronger. If players like Hardik don’t want to play red ball cricket, should he and others like him participate in white-ball domestic cricket when they aren’t on national duty? If this doesn’t apply to all, then Indian cricket won’t achieve the desired results!,” Pathan posted on X.

They are talented cricketers, both Shreyas and Ishan. Hoping they bounce back and come back stronger. If players like Hardik don’t want to play red ball cricket, should he and others like him participate in white-ball domestic cricket when they aren’t on national duty? If this…

— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) February 29, 2024

Meanwhile, Pandya was traded to MI from Gujarat Titans ahead of IPL 2024 auction.

A few days later, MI announced that he will lead the franchise in the upcoming season, replacing long-serving captain Rohit Sharma, who led them to five IPL titles.