Sunil Gavaskar's bold call on re-introducing India's star all-rounder to red-ball cricket ahead of WTC 2025

India's former player Sunil Gavaskar thinks the return of star all-rounder Hardik Pandya to red-ball cricket will benefit the Men in Blue in many ways. Currently, he's the best all-rounder on the team, providing balance in terms of batting and bowling. The reason why he's out of Test cricket is his back injury, which keeps coming back if he bowls many overs together. 

"I'm hoping that, in these next two months, there will be some effort made to try and convince Hardik Pandya to come back to Test cricket. If he starts batting at no. 6 or 7, maybe bowling just ten overs a day, but there with his batting, this Indian team will be pretty much invincible in any country, on any kind of surface," said Gavaskar on RevSportz.

Also Read: Gautam Gambhir wants former KKR star as part of new coaching setup

Moreover, Hardik hasn't been a part of the Test team for six years now, and convincing him to return to red-ball cricket means he'll have to work extremely hard on his fitness. His crucial bowling in the T20 World Cup 2024 finals was the cherry on the cake for India as the Proteas failed to chase 30 runs off 30 balls. Hence, Hardik can be a good addition to India's Test team ahead of the WTC 2025. 

Gautam Gambhir announced as India's head coach

India's World Cup winner of 2007 and 2011, Gautam Gambhir, is set to take charge of the Indian team as the head coach. BCCI Secretary Jay Shah made the official announcement regarding Gambhir's position on his social media handle. Now that he's a part of the Indian team, he has made a few suggestions as to who can be a part of the coaching staff along with him. 

While the names include former players like Abhishek Nayar, Vinay Kumar, and Ryan ten Doeschate, these happen to be members of the KKR's coaching staff as well. As per reports, the Board isn't in favour of these players and has kept Zaheer Khan under the radar for the bowling coach's position. Hence, until any official confirmation kicks in, fans can sit back and enjoy the ongoing India vs Zimbabwe T20Is, where the Men in Blue lead the series 2-1.