"How many options did you have with this young squad?" - Gautam Gambhir on Suryakumar Yadav being made India's T20I vice-captain
Gautam Gambhir feels not much should be read into Suryakumar Yadav being made India's vice-captain for the T20I series against Sri Lanka.
The Men in Blue will lock horns with the Lankan Lions in a three-match T20I series, with the first game to be played at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Tuesday, January 3. Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar were named captain and vice-captain respectively of the 16-member Indian squad in Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul's absence.
During an interaction on the Star Sports show 'Follow the Blues', Gambhir was asked whether Suryakumar Yadav being made vice-captain will motivate him even further to continue playing an attacking brand of cricket, to which he replied:
"I don't think we need to look into it that much because we have to wait and watch once Rohit comes into the T20 squad whether they are going to still continue with Hardik as the captain and Surya as the vice-captain. We will have to wait and watch because how many options did you have with this young squad?"
New Vice captain of India T20i team, SuryaKumar Yadav. Prime example of hardwork and Patience is never wasted. https://t.co/rXLpT1Vqe1
The former Indian opener added that India's Mr. 360 has come into consideration for other formats through his exploits in T20 cricket, observing:
"I think Surya is one guy who has shown that you can actually be a T20 format player and from T20 you can go on to play one-day cricket and then probably be in the reckoning for the Test matches as well."
Suryakumar made his T20I debut in the home series against England in March 2021. He played his first ODI against Sri Lanka four months later and was even drafted into the Test squad for the tour of England, although he is yet to make his debut in the game's longest format.
"He is actually a product of the IPL" - Gautam Gambhir on Suryakumar Yadav
Gambhir credited the Indian Premier League (IPL) for bringing Suryakumar Yadav to the limelight, explaining:
"He is actually a product of the IPL. His IPL numbers are incredible if you compare them to his numbers in first-class cricket. But it's always good when people like Suryakumar Yadav, who has gone through the grind in first-class cricket, have grabbed whatever opportunities they have got with both hands."
The cricketer-turned-politician concluded by opining that it might not be a bad call if Hardik and Suryakumar continue to be at the helm even once Rohit is back in India's T20I side, elaborating:
"Now he has been trusted with leadership and being the vice-captain of the country is always a great honor. So I am sure he is going to do a good job. Even if Rohit Sharma comes in and the selectors feel that Hardik is the right guy and Surya is the vice-captain, you can't keep chopping and changing. If this is your leadership core, so be it."
Suryakumar Yadav (in The Indian Express) said "It's a great feeling to be the Vice-Captain of India".
It will be interesting to see if the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the new selectors, once they are appointed, look to have different captains in the two limited-overs formats. Virat Kohli was removed as India's ODI skipper when he gave up the T20I captaincy as the think tank wanted to have one leader in both white-ball formats at that stage.