All-rounder Hardik Pandya should be included in Test cricket, according to former India captain Sunil Gavaskar, who believes that this will make the Indian team unbeatable in red-ball cricket.

A back problem has prevented Hardik Pandya from participating in the longest format of cricket since the 2018 tour of England. The 30-year-old has made it clear that he is not prepared to play Tests again because he is currently playing ODIs and T20Is. Hardik's workload has been a significant talking point over the past few years.

India will play a tough four-match Test series against Australia in late November after playing three Test matches against New Zealand in October. Gavaskar is certain that Pandya's versatility might be the difference-maker for India in these important matches.

"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,” Gavaskar told RevSportz.

India have so far made it to the World Test Championship (WTC) final twice, but both times they have failed to win. Two years later, India lost by 209 runs against Australia, an even greater defeat than their eight-wicket loss to New Zealand in the 2021 final.