Hardik Pandya returns to competitive cricket after long injury layoff

India all-rounder Hardik Pandya on Monday made his return to competitive cricket after a long injury layoff with a two-wicket haul in the DY Patil T20 Cup here.

Pandya grabbed 2/22 in three overs in Reliance One’s win by two wickets in a low-scoring game over Bharat Petroleum Cooperation Limited at the DY Patil Cricket Academy.

Pandya had been out of action since suffering an ankle injury during the ODI World Cup match against Bangladesh in Pune in October, and is preparing up for a comeback in the Indian Premier League (IPL) as the new skipper of the five-time winners Mumbai Indians.

The Reliance One team also included other Mumbai Indians players such as Tilak Varma, Nehal Wadhera, Akash Madhwal, Naman Dhir and Piyush Chawla.

The 30-year-old all-rounder, however, was replaced by Rohit Sharma as India’s captain for the T20 World Cup to be played in the Caribbean and the USA in June this year.

The DY Patil T20 Cup is a corporate tournament in which a total of 16 teams are taking part.

India wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan, who has been out of action since the World Cup, will also be making a comeback to competitive cricket as he is set to play for the Reserve Bank of India against Route Mobile on Tuesday.