The BCCI’s selection committee on Thursday announced the squads for the brief limited overs tour to Sri Lanka, and confirmed Suryakumar Yadav as the new T20I captain ahead of Hardik Pandya, who was the vice-captain of the T20 World Cup-winning outfit under Rohit Sharma, who along with Virat Kohli will feature in the three ODIs that follow the three-match T20I rubber, starting July 27.
As reported by The Statesman on Wednesday, Suryakumar Yadav, who was among the top aspirants along with Hardik for the T20I captaincy, has been preferred to succeed Rohit, who announced his retirement from the shortest format along with Virat and Ravindra Jadeja, after leading India to T20 World Cup glory in the Caribbean last month.
The Sri Lanka tour will also mark the beginning of Gautam Gambhir’s stint as head coach. The new captain-coach duo is expected to work together in building the outfit for the next T20 World Cup that will be co-hosted by India in 2026.
While Hardik Pandya was included in the T20I squad, Shubman Gill has been named the vice-captain of both the T20I and ODI outfits. Gill recently captained India in the five-match T20I series against Zimbabwe that followed the T20 World Cup.
Though Hardik was Rohit’s deputy at the T20 World Cup and is a more experienced captain – he has led India in three ODIs and 16 T20Is, apart from leading Gujarat Titans and Mumbai Indians in the IPL – it is understood fitness concerns and workload management may have been factors in the decision taken by the selection panel led by Ajit Agarkar.
Hardik had suffered an ankle injury during the 50-over World Cup at home last October-November and was out of action until the start of IPL 2024, when he returned to lead Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League. Since the start of 2022, Hardik has featured in just 46 of the 79 T20Is that India have played.
In contrast, SKY has previously led India to a 4-1 series win over Australia last November, followed by a 1-1 series scoreline in South Africa. He has also led Mumbai in the domestic circuit.
Suryakumar was, however, not named in the ODI squad for the Sri Lanka tour, while Hardik, too, is taking a break from 50-over internationals.
Leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal and pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah are the two notable absentees from the T20 World Cup-winning outfit even as Mohammed Siraj and Arshdeep Singh were included in the T20I squad along with Khaleel Ahmed as the third seamer.
The three T20Is will be played on July 27, 28 and 30 in Pallekele.
KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer back in ODI side
KL Rahul and Shreyas Iyer, who were part of the 2023 ODI World Cup have been included in the Rohit Sharma-led squad that also will see the return of Rishabh Pant in the 50-over format for the first time since his near-fatal car crash in December 2022.
Meanwhile, Virat Kohli, who is on a break post the World Cup triumph will also be back for the 50-over games. Ravindra Jadeja, the third cricketer to announce his T20I retirement along with Rohit and Virat after the T20 World Cup win, wasn’t picked for the ODIs.
Left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav, who played a pivotal role in the T20 World Cup, found a place in the ODI squad while Axar Patel and Shivam Dube are part of both the squads. Harshit Rana was also included in the side for the ODI games, to be played on August 2, 4 and 7, in Colombo.
Riyan Parag, who had a below-par outing in the recently-concluded Zimbabwe series, scoring 24 runs from a couple of outings, was also selected for both the squads.
Squads: T20I: Suryakumar Yadav (C), Ꮪhubman Gill (VC), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rinku Singh, Riyan Parag, Rishabh Pant (WK), Sanju Samson (WK), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel, Washington Sundar, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Khaleel Ahmed, Mohd. Siraj.
ODI: Rohit Sharma (C), Ꮪhubman Gill (VC), Virat Kohli, KL Rahul (WK), Rishabh Pant (WK), Shreyas Iyer, Shivam Dube, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohd. Siraj, Washington Sundar, Arshdeep Singh, Riyan Parag, Axar Patel, Khaleel Ahmed, Harshit Rana.