BCCI Puts Hardik Pandya on World Cup‑Focused Rehab Program

Overview

• Pandya picked up a low‑grade quadriceps sprain after IPL 2026 that ruled him out of recent ODIs and the England tour and stalled a pending fitness clearance.
• His recovery had a minor setback but team sources say it is back on track with a monitored performance block now under way at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru in late July.
• The programme emphasises bowling volume and match‑specific batting work, with reports saying he bowls multiple short spells totalling about 10–12 overs a day and practices on a hard surface with a plastic ball to simulate South African bounce.
• BCCI has deprioritised Pandya’s selection for bilateral white‑ball series and plans to use him mainly in 50‑over cricket in the run‑up to the World Cup to limit re‑injury risk.
• India’s shortage of a reliable seam‑bowling all‑rounder was exposed in his absence, which helps explain the board’s cautious approach and why IPL trade speculation (links to KKR and CSK) is being treated as separate from his medical plan.