Reports: Ajit Agarkar dubious of Hardik Pandya's tactical ability as Captain

Hardik Pandya was stripped of the vice-captaincy position in T20Is and potentially the captaincy in T20Is as Suryakumar Yadav and Shubman Gill were named as the skipper and deputy respectively, in T20Is for the Sri Lanka tour. Pandya as a captain led Gujarat Titans to their maiden trophy in their debut season in 2022 and had a disastrous season as Mumbai Indians captain in IPL 2024.

As per reports from Hindustan Times, (Board of Control for Cricket in India) BCCI chief selector, Ajit Agarkar was unsure of Pandya’s ability as captain as he took note of flaws in his captaincy with GT and MI in IPL. It is worth noting that, the all-rounder was also named as the vice-captain of India for the World Cup 2023 and he had to cede the tournament midway after getting injured in a game against Bangladesh. Although, he has led India in 16 T20Is and three ODIs when permanent captain, Rohit Sharma was not around.

The 30-year-old sought a break from the upcoming white-ball tour after an arduous T20 World Cup campaign but the management turned down the request. He is inducted into the T20I squad and previously, Head Coach, Gautam Gambhir reportedly expected the cricketer to prove his bowling fitness to keep going in ODI format. Gambhir had shown uncertainty about Pandya’s fitness to bowl the 10 overs in the ODIs and had demanded the right-arm pacer to play Vijay Hazare Trophy.

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BCCI surprises with its selection process

The new Mumbai Indians skipper Hardik Pandya has not played an ODI since World Cup 2023 and he has not been named in the 50-over squad for the Sri Lanka tour. India will play three ODIs and as many T20Is against Sri Lanka with the first T20I scheduled to commence on July 27. In a surprise move from BCCI, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Abhishek Sharma could not fetch a place in either format and Riyan Parag has been included in both.