Hardik Pandya remains a big concern for the Indian cricket team as the T20 World Cup 2021 is less than a month away and the all-rounder shows no signs of bowling for his IPL 2021, Mumbai Indians any time soon.

While the franchise’s bowling coach Shane Bond had suggested that we can see Pandya doing his thing with the ball sometime soon, it was the MI head coach Mahela Jayawardene’s opinion on the cricketer’s health that has become a big cause of worry for the fans of the Men in Blue.

"We're trying to do what's best for Hardik, going forward. Whether he can bowl or not in the IPL is something we will have to look at," Jayawardene said. 

"At the moment, if we push too hard (to bowl), he might be an issue where he might even struggle and might not be an asset as a batsman," he added. 

The last time Pandya put his bowling shoes on was back in July while touring Sri Lanka with the B-String of the Indian cricket team who were there to play T20Is and ODIs. Even then, the all-rounder didn’t look comfortable bowling for long periods of time. 

"It doesn't seem like (Whether Hardik Pandya is bowling fit.). Is it the form or fitness its tough to say for us from here. He hasn't bowled for a long time. He bowled 2-4 overs against England (earlier in the year). He hasn't bowled since, then. Didn't bowl in the IPL either. He has almost made himself unavailable from Test cricket," former Indian cricketer and commentator Aakash Chopra had said on ESPN Cricinfo after watching his performance in the first ODI. 

Pandya has been an exceptional all-rounder for Indian cricket, so much so that he was being touted as the modern-day Kapil Dev. There is no better option than the 27-year old for India’s final squad when he is completely healthy and on top of his game.  

However, that is simply not the case at the moment. The lack of clarity about the true status of Pandya’s injury has left the fans in the dark and the contrasting reports on his bowling capabilities from the MI dressing room don’t help either. 

But most importantly, it is the cricketer’s health that is the biggest cause of concern. Pandya suffered his back injury in 2018 and underwent surgery in October 2019. It has been exactly two years since the operation and the cricketer has still not recovered well enough to bowl even four overs a match.

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