Hardik Pandya’s long-awaited return to competitive cricket drew strong attention during the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy match between Baroda and Punjab in Hyderabad on Tuesday. A fan breached security at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium and ran onto the field to meet the India all-rounder during his first match since he was injured in the Asia Cup Super 4 game against Sri Lanka.

The fan reached Pandya while he was bowling his first over. He touched Pandya’s feet and took a quick selfie before security staff removed him from the field. Pandya made a brief gesture toward the officials as the fan was escorted out. Similar pitch invasions have been seen in recent matches, including the first ODI in Ranchi where a fan reached Virat Kohli during his century celebration.

Pandya was leading the attack for Baroda under the captaincy of his brother Krunal Pandya. Punjab openers Abhishek Sharma and Prabhsimran Singh were at the crease when the incident took place. Pandya struggled with the ball in his comeback spell. He gave away 52 runs in four overs and found it hard to stop Punjab’s fast scoring. Abhishek reached a fifty off 19 balls, while Anmolpreet Singh added 69 from 32 balls. Pandya took one wicket when he dismissed Anmolpreet in his final over.

Pandya delivered a strong performance with the bat and helped Baroda chase a target of 223. His unbeaten 77 from 42 balls guided the side to a seven-wicket win with five balls to spare. He hit seven fours and four sixes and finished the match with three straight sixes. The chase became the third-highest successful pursuit in the tournament’s history.

Pandya is likely to feature in Baroda’s next match against Gujarat on December 4. Selector Pragyan Ojha is expected to watch him as team management assesses his fitness ahead of the T20I series against South Africa that starts on December 9.