Indian all-rounder Hardik Pandya will be seen leading the Indian team in the upcoming three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka, starting on January 3. He was also named Team India’s vice-captain for the ODI series against Sri Lanka, which follows the T20Is.
Pandya is widely seen as the next T20I captain for India and someone, who is potentially being groomed to lead the Indian team in the 2024 T20 World Cup in the Caribbean and the USA.
However, the former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan warned the BCCI selection panel to keep a close eye on Pandya’s fitness before making him the full-time T20I captain.
Irfan Pathan said on Star Sports: “The captaincy Hardik has done, whether it was for the Gujarat Titans in the IPL or at the start for India, I felt the communication was extremely good. He was seen as very agile.”
The star cricketer made a comeback into the Indian team after six months or so out of cricket, as he worked on strengthening his back after issues stemming from his surgery which rendered him unable to bowl his full quota of overs.
Pathan feels that the Indian team management and selectors should be very careful while putting too much pressure on Pandya, as the increased workload of captaincy in both white-ball formats might trigger his back issues again.
The former cricketer added, “When there was talk about his captaincy, I was extremely impressed with his approach but along with that India will have to keep in mind that if you are making him the long-term captain, they will have to concentrate a lot on his fitness, whether you talk about him or the team management. It will be very crucial going ahead.”
