IND vs NZ 2021: "Quite honestly, I don't know if that has happened" - KL Rahul on Hardik's FIR row

Days after India all-rounder Hardik Pandya’s name appeared in an FIR, T20I vice-captain KL Rahul revealed he isn’t aware of his teammate’s off-the-field developments.

An FIR lodged by Rehnuma Bhati, wife of Riyaz Bhati, who is allegedly a close aide of Dawood Ibrahim, started doing the rounds on social media on November 10. The FIR, registered at Mumbai’s Santacruz police station, involved rape-molestation charges against Riyaz, cricketers Hardik Pandya and Munaf Patel, former IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla and Prithviraj Kothari.

Asked about the same, KL Rahul refused to delve into the matter.

“Quite honestly, I don’t know if that has happened,” Rahul said in response to a Sportskeeda query at a media conference ahead of the India-New Zealand T20I series, which starts in Jaipur on November 17.

Interestingly, in January 2019, both Rahul and Hardik were briefly banned by Team India for their sexist comments on popular Indian TV show 'Koffee with Karan'.

Pandya Junior doesn’t find himself in the current squad after dismal performances at the recently concluded T20 World Cup and the IPL before that. Latest IPL sensation Venkatesh Iyer, who also bowls seam up, has earned his maiden national call-up.

Amid the recent allegations, it is tough to understand if Hardik has indeed been axed just because of his lean patch. KL Rahul stated that the Chetan Sharma-led national selection committee hasn't communicated with Hardik yet, but he vouched for his dear friend to pull up his socks and fight his way back into the set-up.

“Obviously me and Hardik played together and we’re good friends, so we’ve had a discussion amongst ourselves and he knows what exactly he needs to do and what exactly the need expects out of him. He’s quite a smart guy to understand what his role and responsibility is in the team, so I’m sure he’ll work hard and try and get the best out of himself."

“And yeah, I’m not very sure if there’s been a clear communication, but I’m sure there will be if there hasn’t been one. I haven’t had a chat with him since the World Cup, so I don’t have a clear answer to that. But I’m sure, knowing him personally, he will be working hard,” the newly appointed deputy added.

At the T20 World Cup 2021, Hardik scored 69 runs at a strike rate of 153.33 and bowled four overs without taking a wicket. India failed to progress from the group stage after crushing defeats to Pakistan and New Zealand in their opening two fixtures.

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Full schedule and squad for India vs New Zealand 2021 (Timings in IST)

1st T20I: Wednesday, November 17 – Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur – 7:00 PM

2nd T20I: Friday, November 19 – JSCA International Stadium Complex, Ranchi – 7:00 PM

3rd T20I: Sunday, November 21 – Eden Gardens, Kolkata – 7:00 PM

1st Test: November 25-29 – Green Park, Kanpur – 9:30 AM

2nd Test: December 3-7 – Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai – 9:30 AM

India T20I squad: Rohit Sharma (Captain), KL Rahul (Vice-Captain), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), Venkatesh Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal, R Ashwin, Axar Patel, Avesh Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Harshal Patel, Mohd. Siraj

India Test squad: Ajinkya Rahane (Captain), KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Cheteshwar Pujara (vice-captain), Shubman Gill, Shreyas Iyer, Wriddhiman Saha (wicket-keeper), KS Bharat (wicket-keeper), Ravindra Jadeja, R. Ashwin, Axar Patel, Jayant Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Umesh Yadav, Md. Siraj, Prasidh Krishna

Note: Virat Kohli will join the squad for the second Test and will lead the team.