Even as India began their quest for the remaining 152 runs in Ranchi to win the fourth Test against England, and thereby seal the series, there was some hustle and bustle far away in Indian cricket.
All the attention is in fact fixed on a nondescript T20 tournament that takes place annually in Navi Mumbai, between a combination of corporate and club sides. The tournament, DY Patil T20 Cup, currently in its 18th edition has seen some of the best from India, like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, taking on each other in the shortest format for a while.
Even former champions like Virender Sehwag and Yuvraj Singh have used the tournament as a base to return to form or tune up for the Indian Premier League (IPL).
This year’s tournament is no different.
This year all the attention was on a few names who have played truant in Indian cricket.
The most important ones among them being Hardik Pandya, Ishan Kishan, Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer.
On the opening day of the tournament all the attention was on Reliance 1 playing BPCL in their first game at the DY Patil Stadium. The captain leading Reliance 1 was Pandya and all the focus was on how he turned up.
This was Pandya’s first competitive game since 19 October 2023 when he got injured in the ODI World Cup encounter at Pune against Bangladesh. Since then his rehab and return from the layoff has been part of an ongoing saga on social media.
During the World Cup too there was talk about how Pandya had bowled four overs, five overs etc. But he did not return to action during the tournament and India suffered because of his absence.
On Monday, Pandya was back on the field and right from the toss it was clear that everyone was keen to see how he played. His trademark black hair band was back and so was his swagger on the field.
Pandya took the new ball for his side and bowled with a lot of fire. He ran in with purpose and troubled the opening batters for BPCL Akhil Herwadkar and Eknath Kerkar. Both openers did try to take Pandya on, but were not that successful.
Pandya would often take his place inside the 30 yard circle in the powerplay. It was the fifth over when Pandya made a full impact on the game. He first dismissed Kerkar off the first delivery when the right-hander ended up top-edging one and it did not go far. Pandya in his follow through made a clear call to his teammates that he was going for the catch and he ended up claiming it quite easily. First blood was drawn and Pandya was rightfully back where he belonged.
Then in walked Rahul Tripathi, Pandya’s India T20I teammate from 2023. Tripathi watchfully played out his first two deliveries. Then off his third delivery, the fourth of the fifth over, ended up scooping an easy catch to the fielder at mid-off. This was Pandya’s second wicket in the over and Reliance was now in complete control having made early strikes.
Hardik Pandya returned to competitive cricket at the DY Patil T20 Cup in Navi Mumbai.
(Photo: Sourced by author)
Pandya ended up bowling just three overs of his allotted four and yet had made a major impact in his first game back on the field.
He was then fielding on the outfield post powerplay and at times spent time giving suggestions to his younger teammates. When it was turn for the wily veteran Piyush Chawla, who is also his Mumbai Indians teammate, Pandya spent time in the deep either at third man or fine leg. He trusted his experienced teammate to do the job.
Pandya’s relaxed approach in leading the side worked wonders as Reliance tightened the screws on the opposition, BPCL. That was enough as BPCL were shot out for just 126 in 18.3 overs.
That should not have disturbed a star-studded Reliance line-up which also included young stars like Tilak Varma. The chase started well for Reliance as their openers put on 51 in just 4.1 overs. Varma fell for a first ball blob and everyone thought we would have first sight of Pandya with the bat. But it was not to be. He made everyone wait as Reliance suffered a middle-order collapse as they slipped from 87 for one to 104 for seven and 113 for eight. Pandya finally appeared after the fall of the eighth wicket. He had his experienced teammate Chawla for company.
Together the pair calmed frayed nerves if any. Pandya took time and let Chawla do all the scoring. Chawla finally hit the winning run and Pandya’s first competitive game since October 2023 ended in fine style for the charismatic all-rounder.
Hardik Pandya and Piyush Chawla bat during the DY Patil T20 Cup.
(Photo: Sourced by author)
Just as the game ended, there was expectation around the exit of the all-rounder from the venue. A bunch of young fans gathered around the exit hoping to catch a sight of the Mumbai Indians captain, but Pandya spent time having lunch with his teammates in a far corner in the dining area. His table had four of his teammates and there were about four security guards ensuring that no one thought of barging in.
Around the same time, the elder Pandya, Krunal, also turned up in the dining area. Krunal had also been missing in action for Baroda in Ranji Trophy. He turned up for DY Patil Red in the afternoon game but everyone’s appetite had been whetted for the day!
Pandya finished his lunch, met a few of his peers from other dining tables like Krishnappa Gowtham and Ishan Porel. A selfie hunter did approach him, but the security staff around him politely turned down the fan. Pandya then got into his jeep and drove away, briefly stopping to talk to his teammates in the team bus and he was off in a jiffy!
His job was done for the day, but there is more to come from him in the coming days. His return to fitness is the best thing for Indian cricket in the lead-up to the T20 World Cup in June.
But even more important characters will turn up later in the tournament which will make everyone watch the action with a lot of interest.
Tuesday afternoon will be the first sighting of Ishan Kishan since he abruptly left the South Africa tour citing mental fatigue. Since then, Kishan has been the centre of another of the soap operas that plays out in Indian cricket.
We will be sure to bring you another ball-by-ball account of that return to the field by Kishan. Till then keep reading...
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