In the future, if star all-rounder Hardik Pandya returns to the Indian ODI squad, legendary batter Sunil Gavaskar believes it may increase competition within the team. India will have many middle order options going into the domestic 50-over World Cup the following year, including Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, and Hardik Pandya. Iyer and Rahul are both qualified batters for the middle-order positions; the only difference is that Rahul can also serve as a temporary wicketkeeper. Hardik Pandya, on the other hand, is a seasoned all-rounder with the ability to bowl, bat, and make some incredible catches in the field.
“When you have someone breathing down your neck, like KL Rahul will feel Shreyas Iyer is breathing down his neck, which is again good for Rahul because he would want to go out there not taking any match lightly. He would want to score in every game. And both of them are outstanding fielders and KL Rahul can keep wickets which is a huge plus. Iyer can also bowl. So it is good to have these kinds of competitions for No. 5 and 6 not to forget that there is a certain Hardik Pandya who is also likely to come back in the one-day side sooner than later,” said Gavaskar while speaking to Sony Sports.
In fact, the middle order of the Indian side is up for grabs heading into the ODI World Cup next year, and all the players vying for this slot have so far appeared to be in fine form. With 639 runs from 15 games, including a century and five half-centuries, Shreyas Iyer has had a fantastic year thus far. KL Rahul, the vice captain, has played in eight games so far this year and has scored 229 runs, including two half-centuries.
Contrarily, despite only participating in three One Day Internationals this year, three of which were against England during the away series, Hardik Pandya has improved his wicket total and made some noteworthy contributions from the 22 yard line. In two games, the 29-year-old scored 100 runs, including a half-century and registered six scalps to his name from three outings.