The flamboyant Indian all-rounder, Hardik Pandya was seen bowling in the nets in Dubai on Wednesday, raising the possibility of him bowling in India’s crucial Men’s T20 World Cup 2021 game against New Zealand on October 31. The men in blue are don’t have a huge margin for error in Group 2 after suffering a 10-wicket loss against Pakistan, and Hardik’s taking baby steps towards regaining full bowling fitness after back surgery has affected the balance of the side.

Earlier this year during the Sri Lanka tour, Hardik Pandya was seen bowling 16 overs across three ODIs and a T20I, however, he couldn’t bowl in the UAE leg of the IPL for Mumbai Indians. He also hurt his shoulder while batting against Pakistan and did not take the field after India’s innings as he had to go for scans.

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On Wednesday, in Dubai, as per the reports in ESPNCricinfo, Hardik Pandya went through fitness drills, including the short sprints, overseen by strength and conditioning coach Sohum Desai and physio Nitin Patel. After the fitness drills, he bowled for close to 20 minutes to Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Shardul Thakur in one of the nets.

The Indian head coach, Ravi Shastri, and mentor MS Dhoni also monitored Hardik’s progress. Then, following his brief bowling stint, Hardik took throwdowns from batting coach Vikram Rathour.

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Hardik’s inclusion in India’s T20 World Cup squad had raised a few eyebrows as he has been struggling to attain complete bowling fitness. Ahead of the game against Pakistan, captain Virat Kohli had said that he expects Hardik to bowl at least a couple overs per game towards the business end of the tournament.