When fit, Hardik Pandya is the beating heart of the Indian white-ball team. A handy lower-order hitter and a handy pace bowling option, he is a luxury that not many teams around the world can afford. However, that luxury has been wasted in the treatment room this year.

Despite the best efforts to recover his fitness in time, the star all-rounder has been sidelined for the T20 World Cup and IPL due to a string of fitness issues.

With his recent recovery, another injury scare has been raised as he was supposed to be part of the India 'A' team's upcoming clash against Australia 'A'.

A repeat of injuries will have the all-rounder missing out on a crucial trip to New Zealand.

A look back at the five series that Hardik Pandya has had to miss in 2026 is an insight into the importance of his game.

1. Home ODI Series Against New Zealand (Early 2026)

Coming off the back of a quadriceps injury suffered in the late 2025 Asia Cup, the team management's decision to keep Hardik Pandya out of the ODI squad came down to prudence given the T20 World Cup on the horizon.

BCCI Center of Excellence (COE) cited a lack of full 10-over clearance as he recovers from the injury. India's balance was tested without him as they tried out Harshit Rana and Nitish Kumar Reddy, eventually losing out in a tight 1-2 series.

2. Home ODI Series Against Afghanistan

The recovery was looking to resume as a new phase after a minor late IPL flare-up with the Mumbai Indians, but another hiccup put a spanner in the works.

Having cleared fitness tests, a last-minute relapse saw Hardik Pandya ruled out as fit but unavailable for the Afghanistan ODIs. Shubman Gill's inexperienced but enterprising young team came through with a clean 3-0 sweep, featuring debutants Gurnoor Brar and Harsh Dubey but India couldn't test their best possible first-choice lineup without their premier multi-dimensional asset.

3. Away ODI Series Against England

Compounding the list of injuries impacting Hardik Pandya's recovery, the Indian team lost a pace-bowling all-rounder pool overnight on their high-profile tour of England.

With Harshit Rana and Nitish Kumar Reddy both nursing injuries, a two-year layoff from T20Is meant Shivam Dube was handed an ODI debut, ultimately playing a part in a disappointing 1-2 series loss in hostile conditions.

4. Asian Games 2026

With an overlapping international calendar, the Indian team management seriously considered deploying Pandya to spearhead the squad at the Asian Games. Having played a full first-team match, his involvement would have brought an extra dimension to the event.

Instead, his rehabilitation had to undergo a shift as the selectors had to reshape their entire approach without him, creating a gaping leadership and performance void.

5. Home ODI Series Against West Indies

As India looks to build towards future 50-over global ambitions, led by Shubman Gill, the home series against the West Indies showcases the scale of the challenge ahead as they continue to cover up a gaping void due to Pandya's injury.

With a white-ball tour of New Zealand and a home series against Sri Lanka ahead, the Indian cricket team's biggest challenge is to find out when – not if – Hardik Pandya will be able to stay fit.