What seemed like a straight-forward selection decision in terms of T20I captaincy for India for the Sri Lanka series, with Hardik Pandya an automatic choice to lead, has now turned out to be a very two-way race between the Mumbai Indians skipper and the MI’s batting lynchpin, Suryakumar Yadav. While contrasting reports have emerged on who could be given the mantle, it is interesting to note that under new head coach Gautam Gambhir, the plan is to build the core team for the 2026 T20 World Cup and to find a captain for the same. The squad announcement seemed to be taking a while at this very point, and it is being reported that the selectors are likely to finalise the squad today (Wednesday, July 17), with 10 days remaining for the Sri Lanka T20I series (July 27) to begin.
Hardik Pandya or Suryakumar Yadav – who will be India’s next T20I captain?
Both Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav have T20I captaincy experience, and both are first-choice players in India’s T20I scheme of things. Pandya, in fact, proved how big of an impact he can have when fully fit, as evident from his exploits in the T20 World Cup in the Caribbean last month, while Suryakumar Yadav still continues to be one of the most fearsome T20 batters going around. And while reports have suggested that Pandya is likely to miss out on captaincy owing to his past injury record, that is an argument that may not hold much water considering he has played the IPL 2024 and T20 World Cup without much injury concerns, and when it comes to T20Is, his fitness seems not to be that much of an issue. Yes, if it was regarding ODI captaincy, one could argue on that point, but in T20Is, as Cricketnext has learned, fitness should not be a blocker for Pandya’s captaincy claim.
Also, Gambhir and Suryakumar were part of the KKR dressing room under the former’s captaincy and had given the top-order batter the iconic nickname ‘SKY’. The T20I specialist batter is also considered to be among the most popular members in the dressing room.
KL Rahul and Shubman Gill for ODI Captaincy?
While it was earlier reported that Gautam Gambhir is keen to bring in the senior players for the ODI series against Sri Lanka considering there is a considerable gap between the SL series and the preceding Bangladesh Test series at home, the players will get enough rest during that period, but now it seems the senior players like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, both of whom are out of the country on vacation, may be granted extended breaks alongside Jasprit Bumrah as India have a Test-heavy season to come with five Tests at home and five away from September to January. And with Hardik Pandya reportedly asking for a break from the ODI series, citing personal reasons, captaincy in ODI is also a big question mark.
Sruyakumar Yadav has been around the ODI setup for a while but has not been able to take the format by storm as he has done with T20Is. Looking for a long-term stable option, Gambhir and Co. may have to revert back to someone like KL Rahul as the stand-in skipper in Rohit Sharma’s absence. Shubman Gill is also an option, considering he led the T20I team in Zimbabwe.
Will Gambhir Appoint Shreyas Iyer as the stand-in Captain?
Another school of thought is the return of Shreyas Iyer to the Indian scheme of things after being left without a central contract earlier this year. Iyer has a stellar ODI record for India and was unarguably India’s MVP with the bat in the 2023 World Cup. With Gambhir at the helm, it is clear that his KKR-winning captain may have life slightly easier than before. Anyway, Iyer has been touted as captaincy material ever since he made his ODI debut, and time might by now finally allow the Mumbaikar to play to his true potential and stake his claim for the captaincy in the future.
Will Selectors Rest Rishabh Pant?
Considering Rishabh Pant has been playing non-stop since recovering from his career-threatening accident, he could be given an extended break to be fresh for the Bangladesh Test series, which will begin on September 19. In that case, Dhruv Jurel can pip Jitesh Sharma as the backup wicketkeeping option in T20Is, with Sanju Samson being the first choice in T20Is. When it comes to ODIs, KL Rahul could don the gloves with Samson as the backup option.
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