India all-rounder Hardik Pandya has successfully gone through a rigorous rehabilitation program at BCCI’s Centre of Excellence (CoE) and has been authorized to start bowling again in T20s, PTI said. His much-awaited return is likely to be during the India vs. South Africa five-match T20I series next month. The 32-year-old underwent an elaborate Return to Play (RTP) procedure at CoE between October 21 and November 30, after which the medical team pronounced him completely fit for the shortest format of the game.

Hardik has not played since he got a left quadriceps injury during the Asia Cup in September—the injury that not only ruled him out of the tour to Australia but also made him miss the current ODI series with South Africa. The BCCI had already pointed out that Hardik would be treated as a T20I player only up to the 2026 T20 World Cup, so his being declared a bowling all-rounder was a great help for India’s tactical planning.

SMAT stint to test readiness

In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT), Hardik will play for Baroda, as a part of his slow return, to find out if the body can stand the competitive overload. As per PTI, he will be on the field at least two times, once against Punjab on December 2 and once against Gujarat on December 4, with a possible third game against Haryana on December 6. Such activities will indicate whether he is able to bowl in successive matches, which is a significant sign of match fitness.

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Pragyan Ojha, a former India spinner who is now the national selection committee member, is the one to look after Hardik's progress throughout the tournament and to provide the selectors and team management with real-time updates. His presence indicates Hardik's significance in the T20I setup of India, where he is still a power hitter and a good bowler.

The first T20I of the South Africa series is scheduled for December 9 at Cuttack, followed by Mullanpur and other venues. If Hardik gets through the SMAT games, fine, he will be considered for the national squad, which will then coincide perfectly with India's workload management during the T20 World Cup 2026 preparation; hence, it is a win-win situation.

The 18th edition of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, BCCI's premier domestic T20 tournament, gets underway on Wednesday, November 26, across four venues in India. A total of 38 teams will contest for the prestigious trophy in 141 matches. A number of star players will be in action, thereby making this one of the most exciting editions in recent times.

Baroda cricket has received a major boost with Hardik Pandya expected to play most of the matches in the tournament. The star Indian all-rounder has been out of action since getting injured during the Asia Cup 2025. His return to competitive cricket marks an important step, as he has not played since August and was also left out of the upcoming home ODI series against South Africa.

A PTI report quoted the Baroda head coach saying, "He has not yet joined the squad, but we expect him to play the majority of the games. His presence always provides a big boost to the squad." His comeback is highly anticipated as it could shape Baroda’s campaign in the tournament.

Pandya Eyes Match-Fitness Ahead of India Selection

Hardik Pandya remains in contention for India’s T20I squad for the South Africa series, but he must prove his match fitness first. The Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy gives the Mumbai Indians captain a golden opportunity to showcase his readiness and strengthen his case for a national comeback in December 2025.

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The Indian team management is keen for Pandya to regain full fitness ahead of the T20 World Cup, scheduled to take place in India in February. Baroda will begin their Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy campaign on Wednesday against Bengal, although it is still uncertain whether Hardik will be available for the opening match.

In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024-25, Baroda thrashed many records against Sikkim in the Group B encounter after setting the world record T20 total of 349/5 in 20 overs. Baroda won the match comfortably to create many records. 

Baroda scored record T20 total of 349/5

After Baroda captain Krunal Pandya chose to bat first, they scored 349/5 in 20 overs. While the opener Shashwat Rawat scored 43 runs off 16 balls (four fours and four sixes), his opening partner Abhimanyusingh Rajput scored 53 off 17 balls (four fours and five sixes). They had a 92-run partnership for the first wicket as Baroda crossed 100 runs in the powerplay. Baroda scored 108/2 in six overs. 

Then Bhanu Pania and Shivalik Sharma had a 94-run partnership for the third wicket, where Sharma completed his 50 runs in 16 balls and Pania completed his half-century in 20 balls. 

After Sharma was out for 55 off 17 balls with three fours and six sixes, Pania had another strong 88-run partnership with Vishnu Solanki for the fourth wicket. Pania completed his first T20 century in 42 balls. Solanki was out in the 17th over after scoring 50 off 16 balls with two fours and six sixes. 

Pania remained unbeaten in that innings as the 28-year-old right-handed batter scored 134 not out off 51 balls with the help of five fours and 15 sixes. 

Among the Sikkim bowlers, while Palzor Tamang had the bowling figures of 4-0-45-2, Roshan Kumar had the bowling figures of 4-0-81-2. 

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Baroda won by tournament record 263 runs

In reply, Sikkim scored only 86/7 in 20 overs as Baroda won by the tournament record 263 runs to grab the top spot of the Group B points table. Robin Limboo was the leading run-scorer in that innings with 20 runs. Just like Baroda, Saurashtra, and Gujarat have also earned 24 points after seven matches, but Baroda is leading the points table, thanks to having the best net run rate. 

Here are some crucial stats of the historic T20 match

• Baroda scored 349/5 in 20 overs. It was the third 300+ total in T20 cricket history. It was the new world record for the highest T20 total, which beat the previous world record of 344/4 by Zimbabwe against Gambia at Nairobi last October. 
• Baroda smashed 37 sixes in the innings. It was the new world record for most sixes in a T20 innings. The previous record was 27 sixes by Zimbabwe against Gambia last October. 
• Five Baroda batters scored 40+ runs in the innings. It was the first time in T20 cricket history that more than four batters recorded 40 or more runs in the same T20 innings. 
  
• Four Baroda batters scored 50+ runs in that innings. It was the second time in T20 cricket history that we experienced four 50+ scores in an innings. The first such incident was the Zimbabwe vs Gambia T20I match in the ICC Men's T20 World Cup Sub Regional Africa Qualifier Group B last October, where four Zimbabwe batters scored 50 or more runs.
• Bhanu Pania scored 134 not out. It was the fifth-highest individual score in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy history. 
• Bhanu Pania hit 15 sixes during his century knock. It was the joint second-most sixes by a batter in a T20 innings as the record is 17 sixes by Punit Bisht. 
• Sikkim right-arm medium pacer Roshan Kumar ended with the bowling figures of 4-0-81-2. It was the record for the most runs conceded by a bowler in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy history and the joint third most runs conceded in a T20 match. 
• Baroda won by 263 runs. It was the largest victory margin (by runs) in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy history. The previous record was winning by 179 runs by Andhra and Hyderabad. Meanwhile, winning by 263 runs also became the fourth-largest victory margin by runs in T20 cricket history.