'Hardik Pandya will add value to Indian Test team; can play freely without captaincy responsibilities': Lalchand Rajput

The last time Hardik Pandya played a red-ball match for India was back in 2018, during the tour of England. India's Hardik Pandya during a practice session at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium Earlier this month, in a surprising move, Suryakumar Yadav was appointed as India’s T20I captain over Hardik Pandya, even though Hardik had served as Rohit Sharma’s deputy in the T20 World Cup just last month. Former Team India cricket manager Lalchand Rajput, however, believes that now is the perfect time to gradually reintroduce Hardik Pandya into the Test fold. He's an all-rounder who can come at no.6 and also bowl a couple of overs,” Rajput, who was the manager of the team that won the 2007 T20 World Cup, said. Hopefully, he would inspire the Indian team in the same way,” Rajput, who represented India in two Tests and four ODIs, said.