India T20 captain Hardik Pandya on Monday wished speedy recovery to his teammate Rishabh Pant, who is currently admitted to a hospital in Dehradun after a horrific car crash a few days back and said every player in the team is wishing and praying for the wicketkeeper-batter.
With Pant rested for the six-match white-ball series against Sri Lanka starting with the opening T20I match at the Wankhede stadium here on Tuesday, Pandya said it will not have an immediate impact on the team but considering the kind of player the Delhi wicketkeeper batter is, it will be a big loss for India whatever time he is out of action.
"What happened is very unfortunate. No one has control over that. As a team, we wish him all the best. Our love and prayers are always with him, and we hope that he has a speedy recovery," Pandya said during a press conference here on Monday, ahead of the first T20I against Sri Lanka.
Asked what kind of impact Pant's accident will have on India's plans for the World Cup, Pandya felt it was something that they can't control. He said Pant's presence will make a big difference to the team considering the kind of player he is.
"Coming to the point (impact on plans for the World Cup)...obviously he was part of the team and his role was very important. Obviously, everyone knows where the situation stands and there are a lot of people who can get an opportunity through this.
I am saying if Rishabh was also there, it would have made a big difference, because of the kind of player he is. No, obviously he is not there and we can't control it so, we can see what the future has in store for us to go forward with it," said Pandya.
On Friday morning, Pant, 25, suffered multiple injuries when his car collided with a road divider and caught fire on the Delhi-Dehradun highway. The horrific car accident happened between Manglaur and Narsan in the Haridwar district in the state of Uttarakhand.
Pant is currently admitted to Max Hospital in Dehradun and was moved out of the ICU to a private room on Monday. He was on his way to his hometown Roorkee from New Delhi and was driving his Mercedes car.