Young all-rounder Hardik Pandya has been rested for the upcoming Test series against Sri Lanka, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced on Friday.
BCCI has issued a statement which read that due to heavy workload, the selection panel has decided to rest Pandya for the 3-match Test series, which starts from November 16.
Also, Pandya will undergo strength training at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore during this time.
“The All-India Senior Selection Committee in consultation with the Indian team management has decided to rest all-rounder Hardik Pandya for the upcoming Test series against Sri Lanka,” the BCCI statement read.
“Considering Pandya’s heavy recent workload, the decision was made to negate any possibility of a major injury concern. Pandya will undergo a period of strength at conditioning at the National Cricket Academy in Bengaluru,” the statement added.
Pandya got injured while trying to stop a cracker of a shot from Colin de Grandhomme in the last T20I against New Zealand at Thiruvananthapuram. Despite that, he went on to bowl the last over and won the match for his side.
BCCI hasn’t announced any replacement for the series.
India Test squad for the first two Tests:
Virat Kohli (c), KL Rahul, Murali Vijay, Shikhar Dhawan, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane (vc), Rohit Sharma, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ishant Sharma.
