Aakash Chopra analyses India’s squad for Sri Lanka series, questions Hardik Pandya’s intent of playing long formats

Team India announced their T20I and ODI squad for the Sri Lanka series on July 18. Senior cricketers Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli have been named in the ODI squad while Shubman Gill has been announced as the vice-captain in both formats. The youngster wasn’t part of India’s squad in the recently concluded T20 World Cup and but led the national team in the five-match series against Zimbabwe.

He did a commendable job as captain, which prompted the selectors to name him the vice-captain ahead of the likes of Rishabh Pant, Sanju Samson, and Hardik Pandya in T20Is. Analyzing that, former cricketer Aakash Chopra noted that the selectors are very likely seeing Gill as a potential heir to Rohit Sharma in white-ball cricket and for the same reason, he has been given added responsibility.

“If we talk about the ODI squad, Rohit is going. Shubman Gill is the vice-captain. Interestingly enough Shubman Gill has been made the vice-captain of both teams. KL Rahul could probably have been made the vice-captain but he is not there, Shubman Gill is there. So it seems like Gill is the heir apparent,” Chopra said in a video shared on his YouTube channel.

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“Sanju Samson's name is not there here. Shreyas Iyer - he had a very good World Cup, he is there in the team. Shivam Dube is in both teams, both ODIs and T20Is. It means you are seeing a bigger role for him because Hardik Pandya's name is not there in ODIs,” the 46-year-old added.

Meanwhile, star all-rounder Pandya will feature in the three-match T20I series but pulled out of ODIs citing personal reasons. It has made Chopra question his intention to play ODI cricket. The 30-year-old suffered an injury during the ODI World Cup and was out for six months before returning to the IPL. He played in the cash-rich tournament and then in the T20 World Cup and will feature in the T20I series against Sri Lanka before taking a break again.

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“Although ODIs will be played later, Hardik Pandya not being there shows and gives a hint of how he probably sees himself in the ODIs, how much he wants to play the longer format. Remember, he got injured in the last World Cup and didn't play anything for six months after that. So you never know how his career shapes up,” Chopra said.