The Indian team suffered a major blow when their premier all-rounder Hardik Pandya sustained an ankle injury during the ongoing edition of the World Cup game between India and Bangladesh on Thursday. Pandya had to leave the field after he twisted his ankle while bowling his first over in match No.17 of the World Cup at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium.
The injury occurred when Hardik was looking to stop a straight drive by Litton Das in the ninth over of the Bangladesh innings. Soon after he fell on the ground, the Indian medical team stepped on the field, and as a result, play was stopped for a while since Pandya received treatment.
The physio strapped Pandya’s right ankle and then the all-rounder once again stood up and tried to finish his over but then he could not. Injured Pandya was also spotted having a short discussion with skipper Rohit before he decided to return to the pavilion during the innings. The BCCI shared an update and revealed that Pandya has been taken for scans.
“Hardik Pandya's injury is being assessed at the moment and he is being taken for scans,” the BCCI said in a statement.
Former English skipper Nasser Hussain sitting in a commentary panel said that Hardik will not come back to the field for the rest of the Bangladesh innings. The all-rounder can only bat for India after 120 minutes or five wickets. The Mumbai-based batter Suryakumar Yadav replaced Pandya on the field as a substitute fielder in Pune. Since Pandya stepped out of the field without completing his over, former India skipper Virat Kohli took the ball and completed his over.
Kohli gave away just two runs during his short spell and hogged all the limelight among the fans. "He almost swung that inswinger as an off-spinner," commentator Sanjay Manjrekar said on-air.