Manish Pandey sets the West Indies tour as a return date

Just when Manish Pandey expected a debut in the blue jersey for the national team in a major ICC tournament, a muscle tear ruled his hope and left him hanging in thin threads. After missing out on the opportunity to represent India at the Champions Trophy, the right-handed batsman is targeting a return against the West Indies.

The right-hander must be disappointed after missing to cap off a wonderful season both in the domestic season as well as the off-season Indian Premier League where his knocks were ever crucial for the Kolkata Knight Riders before they crashed out of the tournament in the playoffs against the eventual champions Mumbai Indians.

“It is disappointing for sure to miss a tournament like the Champions Trophy but injuries are part and parcel of the game. I am on my way to recovery and should resume training in a week or two,” Pandey told PTI. “The target is definitely to be fit by the time the West Indies series begins. I am waiting for a scan report (for a muscle tear on the left leg) but at the max it would be take me couple of weeks to be fully fit,” he further added.

Dinesh Karthik comes in handy for the selectors

Tamil Nadu’s Dinesh Karthik has also been in some scintillating form this domestic season for Tamil Nadu where he amassed over 2000 runs in the season, be it Ranji Trophy or be the Vijay Hazare Trophy. The right-hander has replaced Manish Pandey in the squad for the Champions Trophy and looks likely to take Yuvraj Singh in the playing XI if the southpaw is not cent percent fit.

India is all set to lock horns with their arch-rivals Pakistan on June 4, before facing the tough test of South Africa and Sri Lanka in an intriguing group.