3 reasons why Suryakumar Yadav as India's T20I captain is the right move
Only three players have led India in more T20Is than Hardik Pandya, who has been at the helm for 16 matches. However, the Men in Blue will seemingly have a new leader going forward.
Suryakumar Yadav, who has skippered in the team in seven T20Is to date, has been announced as the captain of the squad for their upcoming Sri Lanka tour. India will play three T20Is in Pallekele, with the opening game scheduled for July 27.
What prompted the change remains to be seen. Reports suggest that Gautam Gambhir and Ajit Agarkar will hold a press conference soon, but that has rarely happened over the last few years. Nevertheless, it isn't hard to understand the merits behind the think tank making this leadership change.
T20I squad: Suryakumar Yadav (c), Shubman 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, Mohammed Siraj.
On that note, here are three reasons why Suryakumar Yadav being appointed India's T20I captain is the right move.
#3 Suryakumar Yadav has a reasonable amount of experience as captain
Apart from leading India in seven T20Is, Suryakumar Yadav has a fair amount of leadership experience. He has led Mumbai and other domestic teams plenty of times and has also overseen one Indian Premier League game with the Mumbai Indians.
Suryakumar is 33 years old and has veteran experience to call upon. Having been through the domestic grind and having been an IPL regular for over a decade, the talented batter is in an excellent position to take over from his close friend, Rohit Sharma.
While the same can be said about Hardik Pandya...
#2 Hardik Pandya's captaincy career hasn't gone smoothly
Hardik Pandya has always been a polarizing figure, with controversies and injury concerns hampering his career through the years. The all-rounder is an incredible cricketer who adds immense value to any team he is part of, but it hasn't been smooth sailing.
While Hardik was the captain of the Gujarat Titans, he was criticized for taking up too much responsibility and not bringing his teammates into the game. He often took the new ball ahead of the specialists and prioritized bowling his quota of overs ahead of the others.
Things didn't get better after Hardik's move to the Mumbai Indians, which was hugely controversial. The 30-year-old had to deal with a reportedly divided dressing room and his poor form.
Hardik has just not been able to handle the requirements of captaincy, which extend to the dressing room, well enough. He's a terrific cricketer, but that doesn't mean he's a terrific leader.
#1 SKY is a calm individual who is one of the first names on the teamsheet
There are no doubts regarding Suryakumar Yadav's place in the T20I side. And that's a welcome sign in itself, given the constant questioning that Rohit and Virat Kohli were subjected to.
Suryakumar is fit and plays only one format for the Men in Blue, meaning that his availability won't be a problem. More importantly, he has a calm head on his shoulders and shares an excellent relationship with just about anyone on the team.
SKY has all the attributes needed to be a successful T20 captain and seems to be the right man to take India forward.