I have witnessed things that went against the principles of Indian cricket: Irfan Pathan makes bold claim amidst Hardik Pandya criticism

Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan has been pretty vocal about Hardik Pandya getting 'special treatment' in Indian cricket and has criticized the latter's form of late.

While Pathan didn't give complete details of the incident, he mentioned something that he witnessed during the 2022 T20 World Cup that he felt was totally against what Indian cricket stood for.

Speaking on Star Sports Press Room, here's what Irfan Pathan had to say about why no player should get special treatment.

"I've witnessed things in the past, particularly during the T20 World Cup last year, that went against the principles of Indian cricket—instances where certain players were given undue advantage, which is unacceptable. To succeed in tournaments like the World Cup, it's imperative that every player is treated fairly and equally," he said.

Hardik Pandya has been named as the vice-captain of the Indian team for the T20 World Cup 2024 to be held in the USA and the West Indies.

India's T20 World Cup Squad: Rohit Sharma (Captain), Hardik Pandya (Vice Captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohd. Siraj.

Reserves – Shubman Gill, Rinku Singh, Khaleel Ahmed and Avesh Khan

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Irfan Pathan on Hardik Pandya receiving special treatment on comeback

Hardik Pandya had an ankle injury during the 2023 World Cup game against Bangladesh and that ruled him out for the remainder of the tournament. The all-rounder was given a special rehabilitation program and made a comeback to competitive cricket in the DY Patil T20 League just before IPL 2024.

Irfan Pathan shed light on how Hardik didn't play any domestic cricket on his comeback from injury and felt it set a wrong example. He believes every player should play domestic cricket on comeback and stated:

"There's this one player (Hardik) who returns from injury without fulfilling the same requirements. That shouldn't happen because it sends the wrong message to the rest of the team. When they see one player receiving special treatment, it disrupts the team environment. Cricket isn't like tennis; it's a team sport where equality is vital."

With just 197 runs from 10 matches in IPL 2024 so far and six wickets at an economy rate of 11, Hardik Pandya has a lot to prove when he dons the India blue at the T20 World Cup in June.