WATCH: Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav Embrace, puts T20I captaincy rumors to rest
When the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) unveiled India’s T20I squad for the Sri Lanka tour, Hardik Pandya’s captaincy snub took the cricket community by surprise. In the wake of India’s T20 World Cup title triumph, Rohit Sharma announced his retirement from T20Is, with his head held high.N
In fact, there was widespread speculation that Hardik Pandya would be the natural successor to Rohit Sharma as T20I captain. The Mumbai Indians’ captain who had served as vice-captain for Team India throughout the T20 World Cup 2024, seemed a strong candidate for the captaincy role.
Nevertheless, the BCCI had other ideas in mind as the richest cricket board appointed Suryakumar Yadav as the new T20I captain. This decision triggered rumors of discord within the Indian camp. Ajit Agarkar, the chairman of selectors, stated that they appointed Suryakumar as captain due to his proven fitness record, unlike Hardik Pandya, who is believed to be prone to injuries.
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Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav share a warm hug
Meanwhile, both Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav put those rumors to rest by sharing a warm embrace before boarding their flight to Sri Lanka. The BCCI posted the video on their official X handle and in the 28th second of the clip, both the cricketers could be seen sharing a warm hug.
Hardik Pandya will be playing as a pure all-rounder for the three-match T20I series, with the T20I opener scheduled to be played on July 27, Saturday. All three games of the T20I series will be staged at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium in Pallekele.
Moreover, the upcoming tour also marks the beginning of the Gautam Gambhir’s era as the head coach. He is set to join hands with his players with a vision to help the team scale great heights.
India squad for Sri Lanka T20Is:
Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Shubman Gill (vice-captain), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rinku Singh, Riyan Parag, Rishabh Pant (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Khaleel Ahmed, Mohammed Siraj.
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