Suryakumar Yadav Breaks Silence On Hardik Pandya Vice Captaincy: Indian T20 team captain Suryakumar Yadav said on Tuesday (January 21, 2025) that despite Axar Patel being made the vice-captain, Hardik Pandya remains a part of the leadership group. After Rohit Sharma’s retirement from T20 last year, Hardik was given the captaincy of the team, but after the arrival of new coach Gautam Gambhir, this responsibility was given to Suryakumar. Before the five-match T20 International series against England, Hardik was removed from the post of vice-captain and Axar was given this responsibility.
Hardik captains Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League (IPL) while Suryakumar is an important member of that team. Suryakumar stressed that he will continue to share a strong relationship with his IPL captain and Hardik is part of the leadership group of the Indian T20 team.
Suryakumar said on the eve of the opening match of the series against England at Eden Gardens, ‘My relationship with him has been really very good. We have been playing for a very long time. The Indian T20 captain said, ‘I still remember 2018 when I joined Mumbai Indians and till today I am a part of that team. This (captaincy of the Indian team) is just an additional responsibility that I have got.
He said, ‘We are good friends on and off the field. When we go back to franchise cricket, it (captaincy) comes to him, so I can relax a bit. We know what we want next with the team.
When asked about Akshar being made the vice-captain, Suryakumar said, ‘Akshar has been given additional responsibility. We saw what he did in the 2024 T20 World Cup. He has been with the team for a long time.
India is the co-host of next year’s T20 World Cup and handing over the responsibility to Axar reflects BCCI’s vision for the future. Suryakumar emphasized that it is more about the collective leadership of the group rather than individual roles.
He said, ‘Hardik is also part of the leadership group. When we sit, we decide what we have to do next in the game and we also discuss on the field. He is always around me. It seems like we have a lot of captains on the field.
Suryakumar clarified that Sanju Samson will remain the main wicketkeeper of the team while Dhruv Jurel will be his alternative. He refused to include aggressive wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant, who has emerged as the most expensive player in IPL history, in the team’s immediate plans.
Suryakumar said, ‘At present there is no question mark on the wicketkeeper. Sanju has performed really well in the last seven-eight, maybe 10 matches. He has proved what he is capable of doing.
When asked about the plans for the T20 World Cup, he said, ‘There is still a long way to go before the World Cup. I don’t want to think about it directly. It’s about building a team. Which player can perform well in which situation?
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