All is well between Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya. Not like there were any doubts but after what transpired in the last few days leading to Surya being elevated as India’s new T20I skipper eclipsing Hardik, the vice-captain of India’s T20 World Cup-winning team, there was the odd cynical eye looking for something to drive social media traffic. Hardik made sure there was none.
In their first meeting after the selectors’ move to chalk out a roadmap for India’s T20Is side in the post-Rohit, Kohli era, keeping Suryakumar at the forefront, Hardik and the newly appointed T20I skipper were like brothers in arms.
In a video shared by BCCI late on Monday (July 22) on Monday night, Hardik was seen sharing a warm hug with Suryakumar at the Mumbai airport before they departed for Colombo. The members of India’s T20 squad assembled at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport on Monday afternoon to leave for a three-match series that starts on July 27.
Hardik and Surya are also teammates in IPL. They represent the Mumbai Indians.
Hardik Pandya hugs Suryakumar Yadav in first meeting after captaincy swap
Hardik was perceived as the top contender to take over the T20I reins after Rohit Sharma announced his retirement from the shortest format after the World Cup triumph. The all-rounder was, in fact, India’s unofficial T20I captain for almost a year between December 2022 and October 2023 but things changed after he suffered an ankle injury during the group stages of the ODI World Cup last year.
New coach Gautam Gambhir and chairman of selectors Ajit Agarkar wanted a captain who would be available for all T20I matches going ahead. They were not that confident that Hardik was that man, considering his poor history of injuries.
Why Suryakumar was made T20I captain ahead of Hardik Pandya
“Why Surya was made captain? Because he is one of the deserving candidates. The one we know has been around the dressing room over the last one year, you get feedback from the dressing room a lot. He has got a good cricketing brain and he is still one of the best T20 batters in the world,” Agarkar said during the joint press conference.
“You (would) want a captain that’s going to be more likely to play all the games. We think he’s a deserving candidate and hopefully we’ll see over time how he develops into the role.”The chairman of selectors said they wanted a captain with a proven fitness record and not someone who was prone to injuries as Pandya is believed to be.
“But in regards to Hardik (Pandya), he’s still a very important player for us and that’s what we want him to be that player that he can be because those sorts of skill sets are very difficult to find what he has,” Agarkar said.
“Fitness, obviously, has been a challenge for him over the last few years and then it becomes a little bit more difficult for him and even as selectors,” he said.
“We’re trying to now, we’ve got a bit more time till the next T20 World Cup when we can look at a few things. It’s not rushed at the moment.”
“We want him to be, you know, as I said, he’s an important player for us, and hopefully, his performances are more important — that was the thought behind it. The fitness is a clear challenge and we want someone who’s likely to be available more often than not,” Agarkar said.
As regards to former vice-captain KL Rahul being overlooked, he retorted, “I wasn’t there when KL was superseded; I wasn’t the selector firstly.”
“We’ve got a little bit more time now till the… Since I’ve come, there’s been a 50-overs World Cup, almost followed by the T20 World Cup. Fitness is a concern, not just that, we also feel that Surya has the necessary qualities to be a good captain.
“Two years is a long time, so at least it gives us a bit more of a chance to try and look at some things differently. The main thing is we want guys who are available all the time. In this way, we also feel we can manage Hardik a little bit better,” he said.