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IND vs AFG 2026 ODIs: There is finally some good news on the horizon for current Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya after a forgettable IPL 2026 season. Pandya’s MI finished in 9th place with 10 losses in 14 matches and failed to reach the Playoffs stages. Various media reports suggest that Pandya could be sacked as MI skipper ahead of the IPL 2027 season.
Pandya though is in line to return to ODI cricket after more than a year after being selected for the three-match ODI series against Afghanistan beginning in Dharamshala on June 13. Hardik last played ODI cricket for Team India in March 2025 in the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 final under Rohit Sharma.
The MI skipper and all-rounder had been asked to report to BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (CoE) for fitness test and clearance from the medical team before getting go-ahead to play in the ODI series. According to media reports, Hardik has got the clearance from the BCCI after appearing for fitness test and various drill earlier this week.
“The Centre of Excellence have given clearance to Hardik Pandya. The CoE has been submitted to the Indian team management and Hardik will be available to play in the ODI series,” a BCCI source was quoted as saying.
Pandya had suffered from back spasms in the latter half of the IPL 2026 season. He missed a couple of game for MI to recover from the back spasms as Suryakumar Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah took over the team’s captaincy in the interim.
There is still concern over the availability of former India captain Rohit Sharma. The MI opener had been asked by the BCCI to turn up at CoE like Hardik Pandya to prove his fitness. It is still not clear if Rohit has passed his fitness test or not.
According to a TOI report, Rohit has asked for permission from Punjab Cricket Association to train at PCA Stadium in Mohali from June 8 onwards. The Indian team for ODI series have been asked to turn up at Mohali for a brief training camp before the three-match series.
The fitness of Hardik Pandya is finally some good news for Shubman Gill’s Team India who are reeling from the news that former India skipper Virat Kohli is ruled out of the ODI series due to a hamstring injury. Kohli has torn a distal semimembranosus tendon and will take at least a few week to recover, which could put him in doubt for the ODI series against England next month as well.
A distal semimembranosus tendon tear is a rare hamstring injury affecting the thick tendon that attaches a muscle to the inner part of the shinbone, just below the knee. The selectors are expected to announce the replacement of injured Kohli for the Afghanistan ODI series on Saturday when they meet to pick the T20I series squads.
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