India all-rounder Hardik Pandya on Tuesday (January 21) was not named in the 15-member ODI squad for the upcoming series against New Zealand.
As per a report published in PTI, Hardik, who underwent a surgery to treat his lower back problem in October last year, is not yet ready for international cricket and will now have to play at least one domestic game for Baroda before being considered for national selection.
After the daunting tour of New Zealand, India will host South Africa in three ODIs from March 12 to March 18.
Two weeks ago, Pandya pulled out of India 'A' team's tour of New Zealand as he wasn't satisfied after the high-intensity bowling workload test.
Hardik, 26, recently said that he would be fit for the second half of the New Zealand series but sources in the BCCI claim that it was the cricketer's individual assessment.
"He must have felt that he will be fit. But as we know he has failed the fitness test contrary to what his trainer S Rajnikant claims. It was never about Yo-Yo Test but about bowling fitness. He failed the workload test which broadly means failing fitness test," a senior BCCI source in the know of things told PTI on conditions of anonymity.
Hardik Pandya is out of international cricket since September 2019. During the rehabilitation period, he missed the home series against Bangladesh, West Indies, Sri Lanka and Australia.
(With PTI inputs)
