Hardik Pandya is not part of the Baroda team for the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT), which began at various venues on Saturday (December 21). The Baroda Cricket Association (BCA) said the all-rounder will join the team from the knockout stages of the 50-over tournament.

Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya will not feature for his state team Baroda in the preliminary round of the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT), the national 50-over tournament that began on Saturday, December 21. However, the Baroda Cricket Association (BCA) has clarified that Pandya will join the team only for the knockout rounds if Baroda qualifies.

"He will play out of the knockouts; he has informed us," said Kiran More, a member of the BCA's Cricket Improvement Committee (CIC).

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the national selection committee headed by Ajit Agarkar have made it clear that every cricketer must play in domestic competitions unless otherwise advised or exempted. Pandya recently participated in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT), where Baroda reached the semifinals. In seven matches, he scored 246 runs and took six wickets.

The 31-year-old has been a key player in the Indian team but has not played a 50-over game since October 19, 2023, during the ODI World Cup against Bangladesh. An ankle injury sustained in that match kept him out of action for a long time and he has been focusing solely on T20 formats since then. 

Pandya's participation in the domestic one-day championship could play a crucial role in his selection for next year's Champions Trophy, especially as the Indian team has found a potential pace bowler of equal caliber in Nitish Reddy. The all-rounder from Andhra has shone with his skills and temperament with an impressive all-round performance in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) series in Australia.

Since his injury last year, Pandya has played 38 T20 matches, including international, IPL and domestic matches, but none in other formats. This has reinforced the impression that he is solely focused on T20 competitions. Moreover, his participation in the VHT depends on Baroda qualifying for the Knockouts.

More tried to dispel such assumptions. "He has played in all the SMAT matches and will play in the 50-over matches as well. Baroda did well in the SMAT and reached the semifinals, which they lost due to wet conditions in Bengaluru. Hopefully, the team will make it to the VHT knockouts as well," said the former India chief selector. Coincidentally, Baroda will host the VHT knockouts from January 9, with the final scheduled for January 18.

Baroda squad for Vijay Hazare Trophy: 

Shashwat Rawat, Bhanu Pania, Parth Kohli, Jyotsnil Singh, Ninad Ashvinkumar Rathva, Shivalik Sharma, Krunal Pandya, Mahesh Pithiya, Raj Limbani, Atit Sheth, Vishnu Solanki, Babashafi Pathan, Lukman Meriwala, Bhargav Bhatt, Akash Maharaj Singh, Amit Passi, Lakshit Toksiya