BCCI selection committee chairman Ajit Agarkar has spoken about the decision to appoint Suryakumar Yadav as India’s T20 captain in place of Hardik Pandya. Fitness challenges and availability were the major factors in this decision.
BCCI selection committee chairman Ajit Agarkar has explained the decision to replace Hardik Pandya as the new T20 captain of the Indian team. Although Hardik was a vital player for the team, Agarkar insisted that his fitness challenges affected the result. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) recently appointed Suryakumar Yadav as the new captain of the T20 team with an eye on the 2026 T20 World Cup. Hardik Pandya was chosen as the top-order T20 batsman after Rohit Sharma, who retired from the format after the T20 World Cup win in Barbados last month.
“As far as Hardik is concerned, he is still a very important player for us. Fitness is a challenge for him… then it becomes difficult for the coach or the selectors. Fitness is an obvious challenge and we want someone who is available more often.” We believe Surya has the qualities to be the captain in the World Cup. We have seen what he can do with the bat and ball, has his role changed, yes, we spoke to him. Ajit Agarkar told in a press conference why this star batsman was given preference over Hardik Pandya.
Hardik, who was widely expected to take over the captaincy after serving as vice-captain during the T20 World Cup, came in ahead of the official squad announcement for the white-ball tour of Sri Lanka. Despite his experience as captain in the IPL with Gujarat Titans, where he led the team to two finals and a trophy in his debut season, concerns over his fitness played a key role in the selectors’ decision.
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During his time at Gujarat Titans, Hardik received guidance from former India cricketer Ashish Nehra, but did not receive the same support under Mumbai Indians head coach Mark Boucher. Despite Boucher’s support, Hardik faced challenges, including crowd reactions and media speculation about a rift within the Mumbai Indians dressing room. Apart from his IPL captaincy, Hardik has led India in 16 T20Is and three ODIs in the absence of Rohit Sharma. Suryakumar Yadav will captain the T20I series against Sri Lanka to be played on July 27, 28 and 30 in Pallekele.
