Hardik Pandya’s captaincy prospects have been hit by fitness concerns and tactical doubts, with Gautam Gambhir’s appointment also playing a part, which according to a report, highlights Pandya’s need for ‘handholding’, as Ajit Agarkar said.
Suryakumar Yadav has been named as India’s captain in place of Hardik Pandya due to SKY’s “constant availability”. BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar made this statement while addressing the media in Mumbai on July 22.
Agarkar was accompanied by his former India teammate and newly-appointed Team India head coach Gautam Gambhir. The press conference was held in view of India’s Sri Lanka cricket tour. The first match will be held on July 27.
“Fitness was an obvious challenge and we wanted someone who could be available more often. He is one of the best T20 batsmen and as captain he will play all the matches. We think he is a fit captain. Let’s see how he fits into this role,” Agarkar was quoted as saying by PTI.
“It is hard to ascertain Hardik’s abilities and it is hard to ascertain fitness. We have a little more time and we can look at a few things. Fitness was an obvious challenge and we wanted someone who could be available more often,” Agarkar said.
He also spoke about Pandya not being given the captaincy in the 2024 T20 World Cup despite Rohit Sharma being the vice-captain.
“We got the usual feedback from the dressing room,” he said.
Gambhir and Agarkar’s role in Hardik not getting the captaincy!
A PTI report had earlier stated that Gautam Gambhir’s appointment has affected Pandya’s chances of becoming the national captain. The Agarkar-led selection committee was skeptical about Pandya’s tactical abilities as an international captain.
Pandya needs the “handhold” provided by Ashish Nehra at Gujarat Titans (GT). Hardik-led GT will make their successful debut in IPL 2022. Gujarat won their maiden trophy by defeating Rajasthan Royals by 7 wickets in the final.
Hardik’s GT had a successful outing the following year as well. They reached the final but lost to Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings (CSK).
In 2024, he replaced Rohit as the captain of Mumbai Indians (MI). According to a PTI report, MI head coach Mark Boucher did not extend the same kind of support. Pandya’s performance in IPL 2024 was poor and Mumbai finished last in the points table.
The report also stated that the young players in the Indian team preferred Surya over Pandya. Agarkar’s comment “Common sense from the kitchen” confirms this.
