Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya has opened up on his injury suffered last year during the ODI World Cup. Pandya said he promised the team management to return to action in five days but his haste led to aggravation of the injury, forcing him to skip the tournament. 

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Pandya was last seen in action during the league match against Bangladesh in the marquee tournament. During the match, Pandya twisted his ankle when he came to bowl his first over of the day. 

“I had been preparing for the World Cup for more than a year. It was a freak injury during the match. The injury was said to be for 25 days and that would mean I would miss the rest of the World Cup, but I pushed,” Pandya told host broadcasters Star Sports.

“I told the management that I would return after five days. I got injections done on my ankle in three places. I had to remove blood from my ankle because of the swelling. I wanted to give everything,” he added. 

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I knew if I kept pushing…

Pandya said he knew that if he kept pushing, the injury would force him to be away from the game for a long time but the prospect of playing for his country in the World Cup was always the target. 

“Even if there was a one percent chance, I could be with the team, I would do it. While I was pushing for that, I had a reoccurrence which eventually became a three-month injury. I was aiming to run when I could not walk after pushing for 10 days but I missed out.”

Although India cruised to the final, his unavailability was felt during the summit clash when the team was put under pressure by record-champions Australia. The Indian side lost its way batting first and could not apply sufficient pressure with the ball while defending.

After a lengthy time away from the game, Pandya appeared in a few domestic games last month and will be featuring for Mumbai Indians as IPL gets underway next week. His surprise return to MI will be the talking point as he replaces Rohit Sharma as the captain.  

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