"Giving him the vice-captaincy is right" - Aakash Chopra on Suryakumar Yadav being named Hardik Pandya's deputy for T20I series vs West Indies
Aakash Chopra believes the selectors made the right decision in appointing Suryakumar Yadav as India's vice-captain for the upcoming T20I series against the West Indies.
The Men in Blue will face the Windies in five T20Is, with the first game to be played in Tarouba on August 3. The selectors named a 15-member Indian squad for the series on Wednesday (July 5), with Hardik Pandya as the captain and Suryakumar as his deputy.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra cast his vote in favor of Suryakumar being given the vice-captain's role.
"The Indian team has been selected for the T20I series against West Indies. Hardik Pandya is the captain and Suryakumar Yadav is the vice-captain. Giving him the vice-captaincy is right because of the way he has performed," he said.
The former Indian opener pointed out that Suryakumar, 32, is not only one of the seniormost players in the squad but also came into the team with a lot of domestic experience.
"It's not just the seniority in the side but if you see otherwise as well, he had come with a lot of cricketing experience. He has been a late bloomer slightly but vice-captain, I think a very good choice," Chopra added.
Suryakumar has smashed 1675 runs at an outstanding strike rate of 175.76 in 46 T20I innings and has amassed 6503 runs at an impressive strike rate of 151.69 in 258 T20 games.
"It seems like that's now a final fixture" - Aakash Chopra on Hardik Pandya continuing as India's T20I captain
Aakash Chopra feels Hardik Pandya continuing as skipper implies he is likely to lead India until next year's T20 World Cup.
"Hardik Pandya, who had been given the captaincy after the T20 World Cup - it seems like that's now a final fixture, that Hardik Pandya will lead the Indian T20 team for times to come, which means until the upcoming World Cup," he averred.
Chopra concluded by observing that senior players like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli continue to be left out of India's T20I side.
"I feel they had already moved in that direction and it is still the same, nothing has changed. None of the seniors have been picked. KL Rahul is unavailable but now it is extended that you have not played Rohit and Kohli since the World Cup," Chopra said.
There is no official confirmation about whether Rohit and Kohli are still in India's scheme of things in T20I cricket.
The duo will likely be rested in T20Is until this year's ODI World Cup and a call on their future in the shortest format might be taken after that.