Many thought Indian team management needs to change their template after Men in Blue's dismal show in the T20 World Cup 2022 when they were hammered by England in the semifinal clash which scripted their ouster from the showpiece event.
Team India regular skipper across all format Rohit Sharma hasn't played a single T20I since the 2022 T20 World Cup. Rohit's absence saw Hardik Pandya taking the onus of leading India in the shortest format in the recent past. Notably, After T20 World Cup 2022, Hardik has led Team India in all the eight T20I matches which the team has played.
Meanwhile, former India head coach Ravi Shastri wants Hardik to continue as India's T20I skipper in the next edition of the T20 World Cup. He also said that India might see a revamped T20I team with talented young guns knocking the doors of Team India.
"He (Pandya) is already captain of India so he will continue unless he is not fit. “I think they (selectors) will (move in new direction). There is a lot of talent in the youth at the moment. We might have a new team. There will be some new faces. What we have seen here in this year's IPL is some refreshing young talent,” Shastri told ESPNcricinfo.
"Now I think they (BCCI) will go the 2007 route, where they will identify the talent and he (Pandya) will have a choice. His ideas are different. He has played the IPL, is a captain and has seen other players," Shastri added.
Shastri also said that player who is leading an IPL franchise well should be considered for Team India's captaincy. Hardik guided Gujarat Titans (GT) to IPL title glory in 2022.
"A captain should be someone who captains his state. You become a Test match captain through Ranji Trophy. Similarly, IPL is the Ranji Trophy or first-class cricket. It's your biggest domestic tournament and it has international flavour to it to check the temperament of a player against good opponent. The quality is far better and take all that into consideration and see who is leading which franchise and who is doing well," Shastri added.
Former India's star all-rounder also advised Team India to first concentrate on ODI World Cup 2023 with one year left to next T20 World Cup.
"Don't even think of T20 World Cup till the ODI World Cup is over. After that you have enough time," Shastri said.
"No really," Shastri on whether Pandya's workload management is a challenge. "October is the World Cup, they don't play any cricket after the IPL. Probably there will be 4-5 matches before the World Cup. It's not like he's playing three formats. Everything now is separate. The moment Test series comes, he gets a corridor for a month to rest," Shastri concluded.
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