Former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly has picked Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj as the three most important players for Team India in the ICC ODI World Cup 2027 in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia.
Speaking to Star Sports, Ganguly believes that Hardik provides the right balance to India’s ODI set-up in the challenging South African conditions. However, he added that getting him on to the field is Gautam Gambhir’s biggest challenge.
“Hardik Pandya is very important to India’s balance in the World Cup. That’ll be Gambhir’s biggest challenge: to get him fit on the park. I don’t think Hardik plays enough cricket. That’s why he keeps getting injured. Apart from Hardik, Bumrah and Siraj are the most important. These three will be the key because the batting looks after itself,” Ganguly said on Star Sports.
Hardik has been constantly dealing with multiple injuries, and he hasn’t represented the national side since the T20 World Cup 2026 campaign. His fresh injury has ruled him out of action for at least three to four weeks.
Further, Ganguly asserted that someone like Tilak Varma could replace Hardik at No.6 in the mega event if the latter isn’t fit enough. With the Southpaw doing well in South Africa in T20Is, Ganguly felt he would be a right fit in the middle-order.
“Nitish Kumar Reddy can be a straight swap, but I am not sure if he’s a new-ball bowler. Axar has to be at No.8, followed by the three pacers. So if you don’t have Hardik, then you play a genuine batter at No.6. Maybe Tilak Varma is an option, being a left-hander. He played well in South Africa in the T20Is a year and a half ago,” he added.
“So if Hardik is injured, they have to play a pure batter at No.6 and a seam-bowling all-rounder at No.7, maybe Nitish as the second option to Hardik. Jadeja is a terrific batter at No.7, but he hasn’t played much lately in ODIs. Also, in South Africa, you’ll need a seaming all-rounder. None of the batters in the top five bowl, so you’ll have to get that fifth or sixth bowling option from somewhere. That’s why Hardik is very important,” he concluded.
