The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) made a surprise decision to name Suryakumar Yadav as the new India T20I captain starting the Sri Lanka tour. They snubbed Hardik Pandya, who was the vice-captain recently when India won the T20 World Cup 2024.

As per reports, the decision to name Suryakumar Yadav as T20I captain over Hardik Pandya was a joint one made by chief selector, Ajit Agarkar and Gautam Gambhir, the newly appointed head coach of the Indian men's team. Hardik Pandya was informed of the decision before BCCI officially announced the same.

Hardik Pandya captained India in 2022-23 in T20Is when Rohit Sharma focused on ODIs, while Suryakumar Yadav captained India in 8 T20Is in all when Hardik Pandya was injured post the ICC World Cup 2023.

However, a new PTI report has suggested that BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar was not convinced with Hardik Pandya’s captaincy skills and felt that the all-rounder wasn’t tactically as sound as one expects an international skipper to be.

Hardik does require some handholding, which he received from former India cricketer Ashish Nehra during his two years with Gujarat Titans in 2022 and 2023 when the franchise reached both IPL finals and won the championship in their debut season.  

However, such a thing wasn't done by South Africa great and Mumbai Indians head coach Mark Boucher, who backed Hardik despite the violent audience reaction at both sites and media stories speculating on a schism in the MI dressing room.

Pandya looked a bit lost at times and some of his decisions as MI captain left fans and experts scratching their heads collectively.

Meanwhile, Hardik Pandya was named in the T20I squad for the Sri Lanka series but requested rest from ODIs for personal reasons, which was granted, Notably, Hardik and his ex-wife Natasa Stankovic announced their divorce on social media recently.

Meanwhile, Suryakumar Yadav has only been named in the T20I squad as captain as the series begins on July 27.

With Hardik Pandya requesting leaves from the ODI series and India only playing six ODIs before the Champions Trophy 2025 including the Sri Lanka ones, the all-rounder is left with only domestic cricket to prove his fitness in the longer format and stake a claim for the ICC event.

India is set to play three ODIs against Sri Lanka in August this year and then will face England at home early next year in three ODIs.

Recently, BCCI had mandated that all Indian players participate in domestic tournaments when away from international duty. While Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan lost their central contracts for not following the mandate, Hardik was spared as he was injured at that time,

However, Hardik Pandya has been reportedly informed by the BCCI selection committee that to be part of the ODI plans, he needs to prove his fitness and bowl 10 overs in a match in domestic cricket.

Hardik will have a chance to do so in the Vijay Hazare Trophy tournament which will be played between December 20 and January 18. Hardik is expected to play in the tournament for Baroda as an audition for the England ODI series and the Champions Trophy 2025.

"While he has done exceptionally well bowling just four overs in T20 cricket after returning from his injury, Hardik hasn't been tested in longer formats. His endurance needs to be monitored. The selectors will keep a watch on how he goes in the Vijay Hazare Trophy at the end of the year," a BCCI source Times of India.

According to the report, if Hardik fails to demonstrate his bowling fitness, he may not be selected for the ODI team. In fact, his fitness has been widely cited as the reason for the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee and new head coach Gambhir's reluctance to give over the T20I captaincy to Hardik.

"Hardik's batting has not been as explosive as it used to be. He played well in the T20 World Cup but his true value comes through if he is bowling well and finishing his quota of overs. His last ODI was during the World Cup last year when he got injured. It means he would not have played ODIs for over a year. His workload needs to be monitored," the source said.

Hardik’s fitness is the reason why Shubman Gill replaced him as vice-captain in limited overs.

(PTI/ Times of India inputs)