Suryakumar Yadav set to lead India in T20I series of Sri Lanka tour

Star India batter Suryakumar Yadav is all set to be appointed India’s new T20I captain before Hardik Pandya for the upcoming tour of Sri Lanka. Suryakumar will take over from Rohit Sharma, who announced his retirement from T20Is, along with Virat Kohli and Ravindra Jadeja, after leading India to a T20 World Cup win in the Caribbean last month as well.

Though Hardik Pandya was Rohit Sharma’s deputy at the T20 World Cup and he is a more experienced captain considering he has led India in three ODIs and 16 T20Is so far. Moreover, he led Gujarat Titans and Mumbai Indians in the IPL as well. However, it is understood fitness concerns and workload management may have gone against him.

Notably, Hardik Pandya suffered an ankle injury during the 50-over World Cup last year and he was out of action until the start of IPL 2024 when he returned to lead Mumbai Indians as well. Hardik has played just 46 of the 79 T20Is India have played since the start of 2022 as well.

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Suryakumar Yadav has experience of leading Mumbai in the domestic circuit

Suryakumar Yadav, meanwhile, has led Mumbai in the domestic circuit. More recently, he led India to a 4-1 series win over Australia in the T20I series last November as well, followed by a 1-1 series in South Africa too. He is also among the first names in a first-choice India XI in the shortest format.

Meanwhile, the T20Is in Sri Lanka will be the first assignment of India’s new coach Gautam Gambhir, who took over the reins from Rahul Dravid after the T20 World Cup. This will also be the first step towards building for the next T20 World Cup which India will co-host in 2026.

On the other hand, a young Indian squad, led by Shubman Gill, beat Zimbabwe earlier in the week with a 4-1 T20I series win. The squad included only three players from the side that won the World Cup as well whereas a few young players earned their maiden call-up too.

However, Gautam Gambhir had a meeting with the national selection committee recently which was held online, with Gambhir participating from his home in New Delhi as well. Meanwhile, there is some indication that Rohit Sharma may play the three ODIs in August as there are not many ODIs before the Champions Trophy next February-March. On the other hand, Jasprit Bumrah and Virat Kohli have been granted rest for the Sri Lanka series as well.