Captaincy is one of Indian cricket’s hottest topics right now. For the first time in history, two Indian teams are led by two different players. While Rohit Sharma is still in charge of the ODI and Test sides, Hardik Pandya has taken over the leadership of the T20I unit. The decision give Hardik command of the T20I side in all probability was taken given India’s long term plans – one that will set in motion after the 2023 World Cup. With Rohit Sharma likely to step away and focus on Tests, Hardik is expected to be his successor. The only concern is his fitness – will Hardik’s body allow him to go all out in all limited-overs matches, especially now that he is bowling?
Hardik has so far been top notch in his tenure as India captain. He has led the team to wins in Ireland, New Zealand and most recently against Sri Lanka. With Rohit and Virat Kohli pretty much sidelined from India’s T20 plans, Hardik will lead a vert young-looking Indian side when they play the T20 World Cup in 2024 in West Indies and the USA. Weighing in on the entire captaincy saga in Indian cricket, one of its greatest skippers of all time, Kapil Dev feels that if Hardik is the BCCI’s long-term option, he needs to be backed to the hilt despite the all-rounder’s errors.
“I think one shouldn’t look at the world. You look at your team and your way of thinking. If Hardik Pandya is there, they should not say if you lose one series, we will remove you. If you make someone a captain, you have to give him a fairly long rope to make sure he will start performing. He will make mistakes but they key is that you don’t see the error but focus on whether he is ready for taking the team and look for the future. You don’t go series-by-series,” Kapil told Gulf News.
Hardik has emerged as the front-runner to replace Rohit when the time comes. Around this time last year, captaincy in Indian cricket was like a round of musical chairs with as many as seven cricketers assigned the role at some point, including Rishabh Pant, Shikhar Dhawan and KL Rahul. For the longest time, Rahul appeared to be taking over the mantle from Rohit, but his dodgy form has handed the advantage to Hardik.
Under him, India have lost just two matches so far, and considering how well Hardik led Gujarat Titans to a maiden IPL trophy in their first season speaks volumes of Hardik’s captaincy prowess. Moreover, the impact of Pandya the bowler upon his return from injury cannot be undermined. He has emerged to become a go-to bowler whenever the team requires a wicket, to go with the fact that Hardik’s batting has witnessed an upward curve.
Hardik may no longer be that swashbuckling batter but the maturity in his batting is beginning to reflect. Look no further that his partnership with Virat Kohli in the India vs Pakistan match at the T20 World Cup. Hardik scored 40 off 37 balls but his 113-run stand with his former skipper is what brought India back in the game after they had slumped to 31/4 in chase of 160.
