India vice-captain Hardik Pandya absent from team’s T20 World Cup departure amid divorce rumours

Tribune Web Desk

Chandigarh, May 26

Amid divorce rumours, India vice-captain Hardik Pandya was absent from the team’s first batch for T20 World Cup, which left for the tournament on Saturday night.

The first batch, comprising skipper Rohit Sharma and head coach Rahul Dravid, left for New York from Mumbai to participate in the 2024 Men's T20 World Cup starting from June 1.

In the pictures shared by the BCCI on X, several players including Ravindra Jadeja, Jasprit Bumrah, Rishabh Pant and Suryakumar Yadav were spotted, but the MI skipper was nowhere to be seen.

“The wait is over. We are back! Let's show your support for #TeamIndia”, BCCI posted on X.

Arshdeep Singh, Shivam Dube, Mohammed Siraj, Kuldeep Yadav and Axar Patel along with reserves Shubman Gill and Khaleel Ahmed were also spotted.

According to reports, the BCCI decided to send the first batch of players, who were not involved in the IPL 2024 now and according to that Hardik, technically, should have been a part of the group.

However, some reports suggested that Hardik is in London and could link up with Rohit and Co from there, with Virat Kohli also joining the team later.

While speculation was rife that Pandya’s absence might have something to do with his divorce rumours.

Rumours are swirling on social media on Hardik Pandya’s and Natasa Stankovic’s divorce, but nothing official has yet been communicated from either.

Their separation rumours surfaced online after netizens noticed that the model removed the Pandya surname from her Instagram handle.

Following his switch from Gujarat Titans to Mumbai Indians, replacing Rohit Sharma as captain in IPL 2024, Hardik was mercilessly subjected to boos and jeers by fans.

Pandya also faced scathing criticism from prominent former players for his performances with the bat and ball during the IPL.

Meanwhile, Sanju Samson, Yuzvendra Chahal and Yashasvi Jaiswal, along with reserve players Avesh Khan and Rinku Singh are expected to join the Indian side in New York in a couple of days. — with IANS inputs

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