Hardik Pandya was set to make his long-awaited comeback from injury for the one-day series against Australia A. But a fresh injury has reportedly ruled him out of action yet again. Here’s a brief timeline of his injuries.
May 4, 2026: Misses IPL 2026 clash with back spasms
Hardik missed Mumbai Indians' IPL 2026 encounter against Lucknow Super Giants due to back spasms. He remained on the sidelines for the next two matches for the same reason.
May 19, 2026: Picked in India’s ODI squad vs Afghanistan subject to fitness
India announced the squad for the ODI series against Afghanistan in June and picked the all-rounder, subject to fitness clearance, keeping in mind his ongoing back issue.
May 20, 2026: Returns to lead MI vs KKR and plays the last game vs RR too
Much to everyone’s surprise, Hardik returned the very next day to play for MI and also featured in their last league game against Rajasthan Royals on May 24.
June 6, 2026: India announce T20I squads for Ireland & England tours and Asian Games, Hardik picked in neither team
Interestingly, Hardik was not selected in the T20I squads announced for the Ireland and England tours. India also picked a full-strength squad for the Asian Games in Japan and even there, Hardik’s name was missing.
June 10, 2026: Suffers a fresh quadriceps strain at the Centre of Excellence, ruled out of Afghanistan ODIs
Soon after the end of IPL 2026, the 32-year-old checked into the CoE for fitness assessment ahead of Afghanistan ODIs. But there he suffered a quadriceps strain, further delaying his return to competitive cricket.
June 20, 2026: Ruled out of England ODI series after failing to recover in time
10 days later, reports surface that the all-rounder has been ruled out of the ODI series against England as he failed to recover in time from the quadriceps injury.
June 21, 2026: India announce ODI squad vs England, Hardik not picked
India announced the ODI squad against England on the very next day and as expected, Hardik missed the flight to the UK.
September 9, 2026: Selected in India A squad (subject to fitness clearance) for 50-over series vs Australia A
After no update for more than a month, Indian fans were hopeful again after Hardik was picked in the India A squad for one-dayers against Australia A, scheduled to be played in October in Puducherry.
September 16, 2026: India announce squad for West Indies ODIs, shifts Nitish Kumar Reddy from Asian Games to ODIs due to Pandya’s absence
India announced the ODI squad for the home series against the West Indies. The selectors were forced to withdraw Nitish Kumar Reddy from the Asian Games squad and pick him for the ODI series instead.
September 17, 2026: Took first fitness test, Gambhir confirms Hardik cannot bowl 10 overs yet
According to a Cricinfo report, Hardik took his first fitness test on September 17, but didn’t bowl 10 overs, a mandatory requirement for the CoE medical staff to clear him. Later that day, India head coach Gautam Gambhir also confirmed that the all-rounder still can’t bowl his full quota of overs in ODIs.
“Hardik, at the moment, if he cannot bowl ten overs and he hasn't played a lot of cricket since the IPL, we don't want to push him into international cricket, because international cricket can be extremely tough on your body as well,” Gambhir said.
September 19, 2026: Took second fitness test, picked up fresh shin injury
Two days later, Hardik appeared for another fitness test and unfortunately picked up a fresh shin injury.
September 26, 2026: Underwent scans for shin injury, advised rest for 2 weeks, ruled out of Australia A one-dayers
A week later, he underwent scans for the shin injury and the medical staff advised him to rest for two more weeks, ruling him out of the one-day series against Australia A. He is now racing against time to get fit for the T20I series against New Zealand, starting October 22.
Ideally, India would also want him match fit for the following five-match ODI series in New Zealand, which gets underway on November 4.
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