England all-rounder Ben Stokes surprised everyone after he announced his retirment from ODIs at the age of 31/ Former Indian coach Ravi Shastri feels Hardik Pandya might retire from ODIs after next year’s World Cup in India. The ex-Indian cricketer stated that players might start preferring one format over the other in the future.

Stokes stated that he could not handle the burden of 3 formats whcich has become very tiring and exhausting. Ben Stokes’ decision to retire from ODIs has caused a stir in the cricketing world as many players believe that they are being overcooked due to a hectic international calendar, and the frequency of bilateral ODI series is not helping their cause either.

Shastri gave his opinion on the matter, stating that Pandya might shift his focus to T20 cricket. The former Indian cricketer also stated that not only Pandya, but a host of other players will start choosing formats, to which they are entitled.

“Test cricket will always remain because of the importance it brings to the game. You have players already choosing what formats they want to play. Take a Hardik Pandya. He wants to play T20 cricket, and he is very clear in his mind that ‘I do not want to play anything else. He will play 50-over cricket because there is a World Cup in India next year. After that, you might see him going from that as well. You will see a similar thing happening with other players, they will start choosing formats, and they have every right to,” Shastri was quoted by India Today.

Shastri also said that it is an irrefutable fact that franchise cricket will dominate in the future if it isn’t ruling the roost already. The magnitude of cricket will have to be looked at, especially bilateral cricket, as there is no stopping cricketers from playing in global domestic leagues. Unless the boards across the globe decide to cut down on international cricket, cricketers will continue their exodus from certain formats.

“It is going to happen, there is going to be franchise cricket that is going to rule the roost around the world. Then how will you have international cricket? You will have to cut the volume, you have to cut bilateral cricket, and go in that direction. You will never be able to stop different players going and playing for different franchises,” added Shastri.

Shastri, the former team director, was appointed as Head Coach for the national side by the Cricket Advisory Committee (CAC), comprising Sourav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar and VVS Laxman.The contract has him getting paid Rs. 8 crore per year. Rs. 1.5 Crore more than his predecessor Anil Kumble.As the World cup 2019 was in progress, on 13 June, the BCCI announced an extension of Shastri's contract by 45 days after the tournament.On 16 August 2019, he was re-appointed as the head coach of the senior men's Indian team, with his new contract extending up to the 2021 ICC T20 World Cup in India

Shastri had a fruitful association with Team India but the team could not win any ICC trophy during his tenure as coach.

Tags :Ravi ShastriHardik Pandya