Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) all-rounder Krunal Pandya has expressed his desire to play for India again. He remains hopeful about making a national team return after nearly five years away from International Cricket.
Krunal played a key role in RCB’s successful Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 title defense, contributing with both bat and ball. He scored 226 runs at a strike rate of 145.80 and took 14 wickets with an economy rate of 8.41 as RCB secured its second consecutive IPL trophy.
The 34-year-old last played for India in a T20I against Sri Lanka on July 25, 2021. Since then, he has been active in the IPL, representing teams like Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) and RCB.
In a recent discussion, the left-arm spinner reflected on his career and reiterated that playing for India is a top dream for any cricketer.
“There is no better feeling than playing for the country. When I was six or seven years old, there was no IPL. The biggest dream for any cricketer was to play for India. I dreamt about it my entire life and got that opportunity in 2018. In the 18 games I played, I did decently well. I won a Man of the Match in Australia and New Zealand and a Man of the Series in the West Indies. I had a good run with the Indian team,” he said in an interview.
While noting the frustration of being out of the national selection, Krunal shared that he doesn’t let such thoughts overwhelm him. He prefers to focus on his passion and the reasons he started playing cricket.
“I don’t think too much about selection now. Of course, there is disappointment at times. But, you have to remind yourself why you started playing cricket. I have immense love for the sport, and that’s what keeps me going,” he added.
Despite the lengthy gap since his last international match, Krunal expressed that he remains hopeful about a comeback.
“Yeah, hope is always there, right? I am hopeful that I’ll get the opportunity again to play for the country. Fingers crossed, but I am hopeful,” he concluded.
Krunal has seen a strong resurgence in recent seasons and was among RCB’s most reliable players during their title-winning IPL 2026 campaign.