As Team India gears up for the upcoming Asia Cup 2025, they will get a significant boost with the return of Hardik Pandya. The Baroda all-rounder last featured in the Indian jersey during the ICC Champions Trophy 2025, which India won. After that, he was part of the IPL, but India did not play any limited-overs games post the Champions Trophy, so Hardik will be back in competitive cricket after a long time.

The fans and management will definitely hope for a big performance from their match-winner with both bat and ball in the T20 format that he thrives on. Hardik is a big match player, and he lends balance to the white-ball team with his all-round skills. Pandya’s big hitting can change the outcome of any T20I game in India’s favour, and his knack of taking crucial wickets just adds to his skill set. So, he is definitely going to be an important player yet again for the Men in Blue in this tournament.

Hardik Pandya is nearing a historic record:

Pandya has taken 11 wickets and scored 83 runs in the last eight matches of the T20 Asia Cup. Now he just needs 17 more runs, and if he touches this figure in this edition, the Baroda-born will create history. He will become the first player to score more than 100 runs and take more than 10 wickets in the T20 Asia Cup. This achievement will not only add a unique chapter to the all-rounder's career, but will also make him a special personality of this tournament.

He has a golden opportunity to not only make a place in the record book but also strengthen the team's title journey. Pandya’s strength in batting and impact in bowling can keep India in the competition in any situation. India have won the last two ICC tournaments with the T20 World Cup 2024 and the Champions Trophy 2025, and hence Gambhir’s young brigade will like to keep it going in the Asia Cup 2025 to prepare for the T20 World Cup on home soil in 2026. If Pandya delivers, then India can dream of maintaining their dominance in the Asia Cup.