‘Strong possibility’: Gautam Gambhir on Hardik Pandya, Nitish Reddy in playing XI

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India's coach Gautam Gambhir (centre) before the first T20I cricket match between India and Afghanistan, in New Delhi, on September 13, 2026. | Photo Credit: PTI

Delighted with the progression of Nitish Reddy as a fast-bowling all-rounder, India head coach Gautam Gambhir said there is a strong possibility of him playing alongside Hardik Pandya once the latter is fit enough to bowl 10 overs in the 50-over format.

Pandya, who has not played any cricket since May due to a quadriceps injury , was not picked for the upcoming ODI series against the West Indies as he is not in a position to bowl 10 overs.

The role of a fast-bowling all-rounder, a rare commodity in Indian cricket, has gained more significance ahead of the World Cup in South Africa next year.

Gambhir was happy with how Nitish bowled in his comeback T20 against Afghanistan, taking three wickets in the final game in New Delhi on Thursday (September 17, 2026). He has also been withdrawn from the Asian Games T20 squad so that he can focus on ODIs.

“No, first of all, from Nitish’s point of view, it’s actually a great thing that he’s been withdrawn from T20 format, and he’ll get game time against the West Indies as well. We know how important seam-bowling all-rounders will be, probably in a year’s time when we go to South Africa,” said Gambhir in the post-series media interaction.

The head coach cautioned against rushing Pandya back to international cricket. The injury-prone all-rounder will have to prove his match fitness in the A series against Australia next month in Puducherry.

“And once Hardik comes back, obviously, it’s going to be good. Sometimes, we could even go on to play both (he and Reddy) of them in the playing eleven. But, again, Hardik at the moment, yes, he cannot bowl 10 overs, and he hasn’t played a lot of cricket since the IPL. So, we don’t want to push him into international cricket, because international cricket can be extremely tough on your body as well.

“So, if he plays those, that India A series, obviously, he’ll get some game time as well. And that was the clear message to him, that if he can play that A series, and then if everything goes well, he can come back and be a part of the T20s and the one-day squad as well.”

“In the meantime, Nitish will get more game time as well, because he hasn’t played enough cricket since the IPL either. So, I think it’s good that we’ve got Nitish now from the Asian Games, and you could see, the more he bowls, the better he becomes.

“And when you can develop a couple of seam-bowling all-rounders, it will always be handy in a year’s time (for World Cup).”

Nitish conceded 15 runs after he was asked to bowl the first over of Afghanistan’s innings on Thursday (September 17). He bounced back to take three wickets in India’s handsome victory, and he had taken three wickets even in the second T20I.

“It’s been a huge plus for us because we want to expose him to most of the international games, because we know how important he is.