'I Think He Was Entitled...': Ex-India Star Backs Hardik Pandya For India's T20I Captaincy

Mohammad Kaif, former batter and one of the best Indian fielders, expressed surprise at BCCI's decision to name Suryakumar Yadav as India's T20I captain for Sri Lanka tour.

Mohammad Kaif backed Hardik Pandya, stating that the all-rounder should have been given India's T20I captaincy for Sri Lanka tour.

Source : PTI

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) handing over Team India's T20I captaincy to Suryakumar Yadav garnered mixed reactions from fans and cricket pundits. It was earlier believed that Hardik Pandya, who served as the vice-captain during 2024 T20 World Cup, would be named captain for IND vs SL T20I series.

However, these speculations were proven wrong on Thursday when the selectors named Suryakumar Yadav as India's T20I captain for Sri Lanka tour. India and Sri Lanka will play a three-match T20I series before the ODIs, which will mark the return of seasoned players Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli in Indian colors. 

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Meanwhile, Mohammad Kaif, India's former batsman and one of the best fielders, expressed surprise at this decision. During an exclusive interview with IANS, Kaif supported Hardik Pandya, stating that the all-rounder should have been given the T20I captaincy of the national team for Sri Lanka tour.

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IANS Exclusive

Former Indian cricketer Mohammad Kaif told IANS: "I think Hardik Pandya 'shayad captain banne chahiye the' (for Sri Lanka tour). Surya is also a good player, but I feel they should have backed Hardik. 'Hardik ne aisa koi galat kaam nhi kia k unko captaincy na… pic.twitter.com/3IS7m5aI0g

— IANS (@ians_india) July 19, 2024

Speaking to IANS, Kaif underlined: "I think that Hardik Pandya should have remained the captain. He led the Gujarat Titans for two years, made it to the finals on both occasions, and won a title. Hardik was already leading the T20I team, he was the vice-captain in the 2024 T20 World Cup. Now there's a new coach, so there will be some kind of planning, I don't know. Surya is also doing quite well, he is not doing a bad job as such. He has also been playing for quite a while now and doing well for the team. I expect him to lead the team well, but I thought Hardik will be the captain".

Hardik Pandya has led Team India to 11 wins in 16 T20Is. Suryakumar Yadav, having captained in 7 T20Is, has guided India to victory in 5 of those matches.