As Gambhir Era Begins, Surya is India’s New T20 Skipper!

Team India has had a phenomenal run in the past few weeks from winning the T20 World Cup to thrashing Zimbabwe 4-1 in the same format recently. But the T20 squad is in transition after the retirement of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma from international T20s. With India looking ahead to the Sri Lanka series next week, the squad selection has thrown up quite a few surprises.

Topping the list of surprises is the captaincy handover to Surykumar Yadav! He has been confirmed as India’s new T20I captain, ahead of Hardik Pandya, who was the vice-captain of the team that won the 2024 T20 World Cup. Surya, ranked as No. 2 in the ICC Men’s T20I Batting Rankings, has suddenly been chosen as the T20I captain in a move that’s caused quite a flutter in the cricket fraternity. The middle-order batter, who has played 68 T20Is, led the team against Australia and South Africa last year in the absence of key players, but has now been handed the reins of the team in preference to Pandya.

The need for a new captain arose following Rohit Sharma’s retirement from T20Is after winning the World Cup. Hardik was Rohit’s deputy at the T20 World Cup and is an experienced captain - he has led India in three ODIs and 16 T20Is, apart from leading Gujarat Titans and Mumbai Indians in the IPL. BCCI insiders say that his fitness issues and workload management were major concerns for coach Gambhir and were a key factor in the decision taken by the selection panel led by Ajit Agarkar.

The other big surprise was the omission of two upcoming young players, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Abhishek Sharma. The BCCI’s announcement of the T20I squad for the series against Sri Lanka on Thursday evening sparked immediate reactions from fans, who were quick to note the absence of the two promising players. Though neither was a part of the T20 World Cup squad, both left a significant impact with their performances in the series against Zimbabwe which finished just a few days back.

Gaikwad scored 7, 77*, and 49 in three innings in the series, playing four matches and was rested for the final game. Abhishek, on the other hand, slammed a brilliant century during the second T20I, hitting 100 off just 47 deliveries. But he failed to make a mark in three other innings. Nevertheless, he demonstrated tremendous powerhitting abilities, which remain India’s template in the shortest format.

Embracing a new era under head coach Gautam Gambhir, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has picked star-studded squads for the twin white-ball series against Sri Lanka. Batting icons Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are headlining India’s ODI roster for the Sri Lanka series.

Interestingly, head coach Gambhir and Ajit Agarkarled selection committee have also named a new vice-captain for the ODI and T20I series against Sri Lanka. Former world no.1 batter Shubman Gill has been appointed as the vicecaptain of the Indian team for both the formats for the Lankan tour. Gill captained the second-string side in the recently concluded series between India and Zimbabwe. Under Gill’s leadership, the VVS Laxman-coached Indian side were shocked in the opening game but ultimately recorded a 4-1 win over Zimbabwe.

Importantly, Shreyas Iyer, the IPL-winning skipper of the KKR team for which Gambhir was the mentor, has made a comeback to the ODI national team as well. He’d been dropped by the selection committee for repeatedly avoiding domestic cricket last season. The batter had attributed it to his dodgy lower back. Iyer wasn’t technically dropped from ODIs as he had scored a fifty in the last ODI that India played but now that he is back in the mix, he will get his central contract back automatically.

While India comfortably trounced the Zimbabwe team, their test begins now against a stronger Sri Lankan team. Although India are the T20 World Champions, they now have to combat the extra pressure of expectations. The road to the 2026 T20 World Cup, to be held in India and Sri Lanka, begins now. India will hope that the team makes a strong start and picks the right individuals for the right roles under Gautam Gambhir’s mentorship.

THE VIEWS EXPRESSED BY THE AUTHOR ARE PERSONAL

Siddhaarth Mahan The writer is a specialist on Sports and Cinema who works as an actor in the Hindi film industry