'Gambhir did not directly pitch for Surya in the call' - BCCI official on Hardik Pandya vs Suryakumar Yadav T20I captaincy race

The discussion over who will take charge of the Indian cricket squad in T20 international matches continues to remain strong, with star all-rounder Hardik Pandya and swashbuckling batter Suryakumar Yadav emerging as the two leading contenders. Following the T20 World Cup 2024 victory in Barbados, winning skipper Rohit Sharma announced his retirement from the format, making the skipper role open for grabs. Though vice captain Hardik Pandya was the front-runner to replace Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav has shown promise in the last few hours.

According to news reports, the team management feels concerned about Hardik's Pandya injury in the past, which indicates that stylish right-handed Suryakumar Yadav is most likely to be the next captain for the upcoming T20I series against Sri Lanka. The newly appointed head coach, Gautam Gambhir, attended a non-formal phone conversation with the selection committee and BCCI management ahead of squad announcements. 

According to a report in the Hindustan Times, Gambhir told the team management that he would like to work with a captain who has no concerns about injuries and whose workload oversight won't be an issue down the road, even though he did not specifically take the name of anyone for the captaincy. In the ICC T20I batting rankings released on Wednesday afternoon, young opener Yashasvi Jaiswal is ranked sixth, while Suryakumar Yadav is the highest-ranked Indian at number two. 

“Although Gambhir did not directly pitch for Surya in the call, he made it amply clear that he would want to work with a captain whose workload does not become a stumbling block. Agarkar was clear with his views,” a BCCI official told Hindustan Times.

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Hardik Pandya's World Cup heroics were a consolation prize following a terrible IPL season?

There is speculation that the selection committee has a split, with some believing that Hardik Pandya ought to have been named captain because his role was as vice captain during the 2024 T20 World Cup. In addition, it was contended that Hardik's World Cup heroics were a consolation prize following a terrible IPL season. The main concern with 30-year-old Hardik is still his lengthy record of injuries. After sustaining an ankle injury early in the ODI World Cup last year, he was out for roughly half a year.

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