India just dropped their 15-man squad for the upcoming three-match T20I series against Afghanistan, and one player’s reaction to being left out has become the real talking point of the day.
Krunal Pandya, Hardik Pandya’s elder brother, hasn’t featured in international cricket for over five years now. He lost his spot back in 2021 and has spent the years since working hard in domestic cricket for Baroda, trying to get back on the radar of the selection committee, which is currently led by Ajit Agarkar.
There had been growing chatter that Krunal Pandya was edging back into selectors’ plans, especially after strong performances for two-time IPL champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru over consecutive seasons. Reports even suggested his name was being considered as a direct replacement for Axar Patel, whose form has dipped recently. In the end, though, Axar kept his place in the squad and Krunal missed out once again.
Not long after the squad was announced, Krunal Pandya posted an Instagram story that read something along the lines of hope not being lost yet, accompanied by a crossed-fingers emoji and the Indian flag — a message that instantly caught everyone’s attention.
Here is Krunal Pandya’s post:
Krunal Pandya has genuinely been one of RCB’s most valuable players since he joined the franchise ahead of the 2025 IPL season. Under his contribution, the team has won two titles in a row. In his debut season with RCB, which also happened to be the franchise’s first ever IPL win, he picked up 17 wickets while keeping a tidy economy rate, and also chipped in useful runs lower down the order, including one standout unbeaten knock, striking at a strong rate. The following season, as RCB defended their title successfully, Krunal once again delivered on both fronts — taking a healthy tally of wickets with his left-arm spin and scoring well over 200 runs at an impressive strike rate.
Interestingly, Krunal Pandya’s first taste of international cricket actually came back in 2018, when he stepped in as a replacement for his brother Hardik Pandya during a T20I series against West Indies. He picked up a wicket and smashed a quickfire unbeaten knock off very few balls. That performance earned him a spot for the T20Is against Australia, where his first game didn’t go to plan figures-wise, but he bounced back strongly with better returns in the next two matches.
He went on to make his ODI debut in March 2021, marking the occasion with a half-century. Since then, across his ODI appearances, Krunal Pandya has scored just over a hundred runs, including one unbeaten fifty, along with a couple of wickets. In his T20I career overall, he has picked up a solid tally of wickets at an economical rate, along with useful runs scored at a strong strike rate.
For now, Krunal Pandya remains outside the squad but if his Instagram post is anything to go by, he isn’t ready to give up on an international comeback just yet.
We wish Krunal Pandya all the best for his future.
