Lucknow: India wicketkeeper-batsman KL Rahul announced the unavailability of Hardik Pandya from Sunday's World Cup match against England at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Stadium.
"On our side. Yes, Hardik has also been a very important member of the team and he has been there and he plays a very important role for the team. So not having him is also a bit of a miss for the team. But it's unfortunate what happened. And yeah, we also at some point have to look at the present and the present is that he is not available for this game," he told reporters on the eve of the match.
Hardik suffered an injury in his leg against Bangladesh, which India won by seven wickets in Pune.
Consequently, India probably may field Suryakumar Yadav in the team. "Surya will probably get his chance and we know what Surya can do. So, our confidence is in Surya till Hardik comes back," Rahul stated.
Asked what's the talk in the dressing room about England unravelling pretty fast, he said they may not have had a few results going their way, but they are still a dangerous side.
"Yes, they may not have had a few results going their way but it doesn't change the fact that they are still a very dangerous team and we will not go by what has happened with them in the last few games. We will focus on tomorrow and try to compete and beat them again," he said. (UNI)