29 June 2024… On this golden date of Indian cricket, the Men in Blue won the T20 World Cup for the second time. But now everything has changed in 20 days. Winds of change are blowing in Team India's dressing room. Gautam Gambhir has become the head coach in place of Rahul Dravid. Suryakumar Yadav has been made the captain of the T20 team in place of retired Rohit Sharma. Hardik Pandya, who was the vice-captain in ODIs and T20 World Cups, has been completely removed from the leadership role in both formats. The Indian team announced on the night of July 18 for the Sri Lanka tour starting on July 27 saw many radical changes at once, but it was not easy for Gambhir to take these bold decisions.
Phone calls made during an ongoing meeting
This selection meeting of Team India lasted for several hours over two days. If reports are to be believed, there were disagreements and heated debates in the meeting. During the meeting itself, many players were called and long term planning was discussed with them. Surya being selected as captain before Hardik and Gill as vice-captain before Rahul in ODIs is a very important step taken for the future of Indian cricket. The Indian Express report claims that this selection meeting was different from any other meeting, as there were heated debates and disagreements in it. Players were being called and told about the long-term plans of the team management.
Players trust Surya more than Pandya
According to the Indian Express report, a consensus was reached in the team selection meeting that it would be unfair to not give the captaincy to Hardik Pandya, the current vice-captain of the T20 team. Especially when he has performed brilliantly during the World Cup. An Indian Express report claims that the balance has tilted in favor of Suryakumar Yadav due to the confidence of the players. The report claims that the 'feedback' received by the BCCI was that the players trusted Yadav more than Pandya and were comfortable working under him. It is being said that the selectors have liked Surya's man management. Last year, when Ishan Kishan was about to leave the Indian camp during the South Africa tour, Yadav tried to persuade him to stay. This was another reason why Yadav was allowed to captain before Pandya.
Pandya was already told that some say that the decision to make Pandya his deputy was Rohit's while the selection committee was not too keen on it. It was also argued during the meeting that since the selection committee led by chief selector Ajit Agarkar does not have the opportunity to prepare the team for the next two years, it is the right time to prepare a roadmap for the next T20 International cycle. Pandya, the vice-captain of the T20 World Cup-winning team, was already informed about his decision by chief selector Agarkar and head coach Gambhir. Fitness also betrayed Pandya. Out of the total 79 T20I matches played since January 1, 2022, Pandya managed to play only 46 matches, while Suryakumar Yadav was absent only during this period when he underwent sports hernia surgery.
