All-rounder Hardik Pandya has been named as the captain of the Indian team for the Ireland tour. The T20I series will begin on June 26 followed by the second T20I on June 28 in Dublin.
Last year, Hardik Pandya was dropped from the Indian team following the ICC T20 World Cup 2022. However, in eight months’ time, he has made a remarkable comeback to the team. The Ireland tour will be Hardik Pandya’s first assignment as the captain of Team India.
India Squad
Hardik Pandya (C), Bhuvneshwar Kumar (vc), Ishan Kishan, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Sanju Samson, Suryakumar Yadav, Venkatesh Iyer, Deepak Hooda, Rahul Tripathi, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel, R Bishnoi, Harshal Patel, Avesh Khan, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik— BCCI (@BCCI) June 15, 2022
The all-rounder was recently appointed as Rishabh Pant’s deputy for the South Africa series. As the senior players, including Rishabh Pant, will be busy with the test match preparations, Hardik will handle the captaincy responsibilities for Ireland tour. It will be interesting to see how the right-handed batter goes about his business.
Let’s take a look at three reasons why naming Hardik Pandya as India’s captain for Ireland tour is a good decision.
#3 Impressive IPL captaincy record
Hardik Pandya led the Gujarat Titans to the Indian Premier League 2022 title in their debut season. He impressed the experts and the fans with his leadership and man-management skills in the tournament. The Gujarat Titans team performed well as a unit.
They finished the league stages as the table-toppers and defeated the Rajasthan Royals to reach the finals. Hardik Pandya used the resources at his disposal well to form a strong team. The players seemed to have the clarity of their roles in the team and the freedom to express themselves.
The all-rounder deserved a chance to lead the Indian team after his exploits in the Indian Premier League 2022 season.
#2 Future Full-time Captaincy Prospect
Veteran cricketer Rohit Sharma took over the captaincy duties from Virat Kohli in all three formats for India. It wasn’t much of a fuss as Rohit Sharma had the experience of leading teams under his belt. However, the opening batter is now 35 years of age and will serve India only for a few years.
The Indian team is looking at future captaincy options. Wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant recently got the opportunity to lead India in the South Africa series. While, the likes of Shreyas Iyer, Jasprit Bumrah, and Hardik Pandya are also in the fray. The Ireland tour will be the perfect opportunity for Hardik to put his case forward in the captaincy race.
#1 Captaincy brings the best out of Hardik Pandya
Along with Hardik Pandya’s leadership, his personal performance also made a great impact for the Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League. He led the team from the front and finished the tournament as their leading run-scorer.
Hardik Pandya scored 487 runs at an average of 44.27 and a strike rate of 131.2 in the tournament. His run tally included four half-centuries. Along with this Hardik also took eight wickets in fifteen matches at an economy rate of 7.27. His 3/17 in the finals helped the Gujarat Titans to lift the trophy.
Given Hardik Pandya’s performance in the Indian Premier League, it is safe to say that captaincy brings the best out of the all-rounder.
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