Hardik follows in Virat’s footsteps with solo early practice at Barabati

Cuttack: Taking a leaf out of senior pro Virat Kohli’s book, star India allrounder Hardik Pandya hit the nets early here on Sunday, a day ahead of his teammates come calling on Monday for the final practice for T20I series opener against the Proteas.Much like Kohli had started preparing early in Ranchi before the ODI series opener last Sunday, Pandya, having reached Bhubaneswar on Saturday itself, came for a solo practice session at Barabati Stadium in the evening to get acclimatised to the conditions.Having played his last match in Asia Cup, the premier all-rounder is fully fit now, and has played a couple of Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy match for Baroda in the lead-up to the South Africa T20I series.

The 32-year-old pacer-batter had suffered a left quadricep injury during the Asian meet. However, he has proved his match fitness with a 77 vs Punjab in SMAT last week.Hardik, reportedly, went through an elaborate warm-up, including stretching and running drills, under the watchful eyes of two BCCI support staff members during the unofficial training session behind closed doors.As per sources, he did 20 minutes of bowling, followed by a 20-minute massage session and then about 20 minutes batting at the nets hitting local net bowlers all around the park and in the stands. Despite some visible discomfort while bowling, Pandya looked in great touch with his willow though.Both teams are slated for full practice sessions on Monday ahead of Tuesday's first T20I of the five-match series.