Not Suryakumar Yadav, Sanjay Bangar wanted Hardik Pandya to become India's T20I captain I was shocked that he was elevated to skipper because...'

Former India coach Sanjay Bangar was left shocked when Suryakumar Yadav was appointed India's T20I captain after Rohit Sharma announced his retirement from the shortest format of the game. Following Rohit Sharma's retirement after leading India to victory in the T20 World Cup 2024, the search for his successor as T20I captain became a major talking point. One of Gautam Gambhir's first decisions as the new head coach was to appoint Suryakumar Yadav as the T20I captain. Since then, Yadav has enjoyed considerable success, leading the team to victory in 13 of the 20 matches he has captained. However, this decision came as a surprise to some, including former India batting coach Sanjay Bangar.

Honestly, I was shocked that Suryakumar Yadav was elevated to captain: Sanjay Bangar

Meanwhile, former India's star cricketer Sanjay Bangar has admitted that he was shocked when he came to know that Suryakumar Yadav has been elevated to India's T20I captain. He revealed that he had anticipated Hardik Pandya taking over the reins from Rohit Sharma.

“Honestly, I was shocked that he was elevated to captain because, until that point, Hardik Pandya was the captain-designate," Bangar said during a conversation with Star Sports.

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Despite his surprise, Sanjay Bangar expressed high regard for Suryakumar Yadav's leadership abilities, particularly his impressive man-management skills. Bangar went on to say that Yadav is the ideal fit to lead this relatively young Indian T20I squad, especially in light of the recent retirements of key senior players like Ravindra Jadeja, Rohit Sharma, and Virat Kohli.

“The way he handled that transition shows his great man-management skills. It’s still early days, but he’s the best fit for this young squad after the retirements of Jadeja, Kohli, and Rohit. That’s a big plus—he can be the leader of this new generation, someone who is one among them,” Bangar further added.

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Suryakumar is currently at the helm of the Indian team in the ongoing five-match T20I series against England. India began the series strongly, securing back-to-back wins in the first two T20Is against England held in Kolkata and Chennai. However, their momentum was disrupted by a loss in the third T20I in Rajkot. The teams now move to Pune for the crucial fourth T20I. A win in this match would give India an unassailable lead and seal the series victory with one game still to play.