NEW DELHI: When Hardik Pandya returned after India's ICC T20 World Cup 2024 triumph, he didn't anticipate losing his T20 captaincy to Suryakumar Yadav. Suryakumar was chosen as India's T20I captain for the series against Sri Lanka, as chief selector Ajit Agarkar sought someone "likely to be available more often."
Pandya, who was Rohit Sharma's deputy during India's recent T20 World Cup triumph, has faced fitness issues, including an ankle injury during last year's 50-over World Cup.
Despite his strong performance in the T20 World Cup—scoring 144 runs in six innings at an average of 48.00 and a strike rate of 151.57, along with 11 wickets in eight games at an average of 17.36 and an economy rate of 7.64—Pandya was removed from the leadership role and not included in the ODI squad.
1/8:India’s Youngest Cricketers to Score 1000 Runs in a Year
Getty Images
2/8:Sachin Tendulkar
Sachin Tendulkar achieved the milestone of scoring 1000 runs in a calendar year for the first time in 1992 at the young age of 19. Agencies
3/8:Ravi Shastri
Ravi Shastri, another Indian cricketing legend, achieved the same milestone at the age of 21 in 1983. Shastri went on to have a successful career as a player and later as a coach of the Indian team.Agencies
4/8:Vinod Kambli
Vinod Kambli, who was Tendulkar's childhood friend and teammate, also achieved the milestone of 1000 runs at the age of 21 in 1993. Kambli had a promising start to his career but unfortunately could not sustain the same level of success as Tendulkar.Agencies
5/8:Sachin Tendulkar
Sachin Tendulkar achieved the milestone of 1000 runs again at the age of 21 in 1994, showing his consistency and ability to score runs at the highest level.Agencies
6/8:Dinesh Karthik
Dinesh Karthik, the wicket-keeper batsman, achieved the milestone of 1000t runs at the age of 22 in 2007. Agencies
7/8:Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli also achieved the milestone of 1000 runs in a calendar year at the age of 22 in 2010. Kohli has since gone on to become one of the greatest batsmen of all time, breaking numerous records and leading India to many victories.Getty Images
8/8:Yashasvi Jaiswal
<p><br /><br />Yashasvi Jaiswal became the first-ever player to touch the 1,000-run mark in international cricket in 2024.<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /></p>PTIFormer India pacer Ashish Nehra described the decision as a 'surprise.'
"It is a decision of the coach and selection committee. It came as a big surprise, obviously. It can be because he is not that fit, he doesn't play many matches, he plays just one format - this can be one of the reasons. But Hardik Pandya is a very important player in the Indian setup when you talk about white-ball cricket and when he is fit," Nehra told TimesofIndia.com in an interview.
Suryakumar and Gambhir share a strong bond dating back to their days with Kolkata Knight Riders in 2014. Gambhir, who was the KKR captain, showed significant faith in Suryakumar, even making him the vice-captain at one point.
Is Gambhir viewing Suryakumar, who made a crucial catch in the T20 World Cup final, as a long-term T20I captaincy prospect?
"I am not sure whether he is a long-term or short-term prospect. It all depends on his captaincy, form, and most importantly, his equation with the coach and the selection committee. He is a captain in T20Is," Nehra said.
"The main captain is Rohit Sharma, and Shubman Gill has been announced as his deputy. If you look at T20Is, India will play 5 or 6 T20Is this year. Surya has been part of the Indian side for a while. Rohit is there in the Indian side and will be leading in the other two formats - ODIs and Tests. Virat is there too. After winning the World Cup, this is a good transition in the Indian team. You have a lot of replacements," he added.
"Surya played at KKR when GG was there. So, it's not like a new coach has come in and Surya has become a new skipper. It's because they know each other well. GG knows Surya's capabilities and strengths as a player and captain. If we see other countries, they have had three different captains or two different captains for a long time. I am sure captain Surya will do well under coach GG," Nehra concluded.
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