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Hardik is also in the leadership team after Rohit's T20I retirement - Suryakumar
Hardik is also in the leadership team after Rohit's T20I retirement - Suryakumar
Rohit Sharma's Vice Captain, Hardik Pandya was in the T20I World Cup in 2024.
Hardik Pandya, who was once India's captain and later served as Rohit Sharma's vice-captain for the 2024 T20 World Cup, has recently lost his position in India's leadership hierarchy. The Indian team vice-captain's name hasn’t been announced yet as Axar Patel's vice-captaincy was aloft for the T20I against England. Suryakumar Yadav made a statement regarding that and said that Pandeya played an important role in decision-making.
Ahead of the T20I series opener in Kolkata, Suryakumar shared, "I have a really good relationship with him. We've been playing together for a long time. I remember going back to Mumbai Indians in 2018, and since then, I've taken on more responsibility. When we switch back to franchise cricket, I can relax a bit. We're good friends on the field and understand what we want for the team moving forward.
"Axar has also been given more responsibility. We saw how well he performed in the 2024 World Cup. He's been part of the team for quite a while. Hardik is part of the leadership group too. When we meet, we discuss our plans for upcoming games, and he's always around. It's like having many leaders on the field."
The India-England series will be Gautam Gambhir’s third assignment as head coach of the T20I team. He began his coaching journey with Suryakumar’s team during the series against Sri Lanka last year but skipped the South Africa series to assist the Test team for the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Even though he hasn’t always been involved with the T20I setup, Suryakumar is familiar with Gambhir's coaching style and has spoken highly of the former India player.
I’ve played under Gauti bhai for four years and spent a lot of time with him. I know how he operates, and he understands me too; we don’t need to talk much to know what each other thinks. His coaching journey began with the Sri Lanka series, and he was there for the matches against Bangladesh. He missed South Africa because he was preparing for Tests, but he kickstarted our journey. I really like his coaching style, and I feel we’re heading in the right direction.
"He gives players a lot of freedom and lets them express themselves. He keeps things simple and understands what’s going on in the players' minds. The dressing room has a relaxed vibe," said Suryakumar.
The Indian team has made a smooth transition since winning the T20 World Cup, achieving series wins against Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, and South Africa. Tilak Varma surprised everyone in South Africa after being promoted to No. 3, while Sanju Samson has established himself as the first-choice wicketkeeper-batter in the last two series. Suryakumar mentioned that the batting order, excluding the openers, will be flexible, and praised Samson for making the most of his chances to secure his spot.
"We want everyone to be flexible with the batting order. Besides the openers, from positions 3 to 8 or 3 to 7, we all need to be ready to bat at any time. We've been practicing for that. If I need to bat at number 3 or Tilak does, it can change from game to game.
"Right now, there’s no doubt about the wicketkeeper. Sanju has performed really well in the last 7-8 or even 10 games. He has shown what he can do. That’s what we want from all the players. Not just the wicketkeeper, but all the 6-7 batters need to have the right mindset, putting the team first and moving forward positively. He has taken his chance and made it count, and I’m really happy for him," he said.
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