Hardik Pandya’s removal from India’s leadership role questioned, Mumbai Indians drawn into the matter
Indian cricketer-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra has called for clarification on Hardik Pandya’s leadership role in the Indian cricket team. After India’s triumph in the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 in June, Hardik was expected to succeed Rohit Sharma as T20I captain following the latter’s retirement.
In the absence of Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya has been the man to lead India in T20I cricket. The all-rounder has performed brilliantly, winning five out of six T20I matches as India’s captain. But at the last minute, BCCI named Suryakumar Yadav as India’s new T20I captain for the Sri Lanka series.
Aakash Chopra calls for clarification on Hardik Pandya’s role in the Indian cricket team
Recently, Axar Patel was named vice-captain for the upcoming five-match T20I series against England, raising questions as to why Hardik is no longer being considered for the leadership. However, the Indian all-rounder remains part of the T20I squad for the upcoming home series against England.
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Meanwhile, Aakash Chopra questioned why Hardik Pandya is being ignored for leading roles in the Indian cricket team. Highlighting his performance as both a player and a captain, Chopra said he is confident that Hardik will definitely play in the upcoming ICC Champions Trophy 2025.
What happened to Hardik Pandya?: Aakash Chopra to BCCI
Aakash Chopra said on his YouTube channel, “What happened to Hardik Pandya? Nobody thinks or talks about him. What exactly happened to him? They will surely go to the Champions Trophy. He brings that balance. He had an exceptional T20 World Cup. He is the captain of Mumbai Indians. He led India in 6 T20I series and won five of them. When Rohit was not available, Hardik was the captain.”
Furthermore, the cricket expert expressed shock over what exactly happened that Hardik Pandya is completely off the captaincy radar, as he is not even the vice-captain anymore. He emphasized that it is unfair to judge Hardik after one bad IPL season as the captain of Mumbai Indians.
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Aakash Chopra further explained, “All of a sudden, what happened? He’s not even a co-captain. They don’t talk about him. Mumbai Indians had a bad reason but you can’t blame Hardik for that. Even if the performance and his captaincy were bad, it has nothing to do with Indian cricket.”
Aakash Chopra says Indian captaincy is not dependent on IPL performance
The former Indian batsman also noted that the captaincy of the Indian team is not decided on the basis of IPL captaincy, so what is happening with Pandya is beyond his understanding. Chopra believes that it should be clear whether Hardik can be considered as captain in the future, as the Indian cricket team is likely to have three different captains in the future.
Chopra signed off by saying, “The captaincy of the Indian team is not decided on the basis of the franchise captain. If so, things would be different. There have been so many captains who have led India despite their franchise not doing anything in the IPL. We seem to be heading towards different captains in all three formats. Hardik is not even the vice-captain and that is a bit surprising.”
