When Suryakumar Yadav was announced as Rohit Sharma’s successor, everyone was baffled. The reports had suggested that Hardik Pandya wouldn’t be India’s new T20I skipper, but that seemed unbelievable. Ever since Hardik took the Gujarat Titans to the title in his maiden year as captain, he has been touted as the next in line to Rohit. The all-rounder was the vice-captain at the 2024 T20 World Cup, and he had led Team India on multiple occasions in white-ball cricket in the last couple of years.
Yet Suryakumar was named the skipper in India’s T20I squad for Sri Lanka. Why? What changed all of a sudden that Hardik not only lost the captaincy race but now isn’t even the next in line, with Shubman Gill becoming the new vice-captain in both T20Is and ODIs?
Irresistible Suryakumar Yadav
Despite Hardik Pandya being one of the main reasons why Team India won their first ICC title after 11 years, neither his teammates nor the management were in favour of having him as the new T20I captain. It wasn’t a particular flaw in Hardik but rather Suryakumar Yadav’s appeal that turned everyone towards him.
“After the T20 World Cup ended, the BCCI went to all the players and asked their feedback: who do they want as their next T20I captain? More players, including the seniors, backed Suryakumar Yadav over Hardik Pandya because of his laid-back style and rapport with every player. Rahul Dravid had praised him on multiple occasions, and the team management is very impressed by him,” a anonymous BCCI source told Vimal Kumar.
Suryakumar Yadav vs Hardik Pandya: IPL & T20I captaincy record
| Captain | Matches | Won | Lost | Win % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Suryakumar Yadav | 8 | 6 | 2 | 75 |
| Hardik Pandya | 61 | 36 | 25 | 59.01 |
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