A fortnight after he sustained an ankle injury while bowling against Bangladesh, Hardik Pandya’s World Cup dream is over, with India drafting Prasidh Krishna in as a replacement player. Pandya, the 30-year-old all-rounder, was also the vice-captain, and the skill set he brought to the side cannot be adequately replaced.
Pandya had gone to the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore to have the injury assessed and then try to recover in time for the business end of the tournament. But after missing games against New Zealand, England and Sri Lanka, medical advice has cut short his campaign.
Pandya made 11 not out in his only hit and took five wickets in just 16.3 overs in the tournament. In his absence, Suryakumar Yadav was brought in to strengthen the batting and Mohammed Shami replaced Shardul Thakur to lend extra teeth to the pace bowling.
Krishna’s inclusion was officially approved by the tournament’s Event Technical Committee on Saturday. He has taken 29 wickets in 17 previous ODIs, with an especially outstanding record in home conditions. In eight ODIs in India, he has taken 18 wickets at 19.05.
He will now be available for the top-of-the-table clash against South Africa at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday.