Dinesh Karthik slams BCCI for Hardik Pandya's sacking and Axar Patel's appointment as vice-captain

Former Indian wicketkeeper-batter and commentator Dinesh Karthik slammed the BCCI and the national selectors for removing Hardik Pandya from vice-captaincy ahead of the five-match T20I series against England, starting on January 22 at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

Dinesh Karthik was baffled by Hardik Pandya’s removal from the Indian cricket team’s vice-captaincy in the T20I cricket. The cricket expert further questioned the reason why the Indian all-rounder is now no more an automatic vice-captaincy choice for the white-ball formats of the game, despite he led India in Rohit Sharma’s absence from T20Is last year regularly.

Dinesh Karthik baffled by Hardik Pandya’s removal from India's T20I leadership

Despite being a strong contender, Hardik Pandya was surprisingly overlooked for India’s captaincy after Rohit Sharma's retirement from T20I cricket, and that has already raised many eyebrows. Adding to the surprise, Pandya wasn’t even named vice-captain after Suryakumar Yadav was named as Team India’s new T20I captain last year.

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At that time, Shubman Gill was appointed as Suryakumar’s deputy for India’s T20I series against Sri Lanka. Even when Gill lost his spot in the T20I squad, Pandya was not selected as India’s vice-captain, as the BCCI and the national selectors opted not to name a vice-captain for the subsequent T20I series against Bangladesh and South Africa.

And now the national selectors made another unexpected decision, as they named Axar Patel as India’s new vice-captain for the upcoming five-match T20I series against England at home, overlooking Hardik yet again without any justification. The Indian selectors this move has left many surprised and puzzled, including Dinesh Karthik.

Hardik Pandya’s success as India's T20I captain overlooked by the BCCI and selectors

Recently, Dinesh Karthik has expressed his shock and confusion over Hardik Pandya being overlooked from leadership roles in the Indian cricket team. Despite delivering strong performances and guiding India to victories in bilateral series, Pandya’s removal from India's T20I vice-captaincy has left the commentator baffled.

Notably, Pandya showcased impressive leadership skills in T20I cricket in Rohit Sharma's absence, guiding the Men in Blue to victory in 11 out of 16 matches. The Indian all-rounder successfully led the Indian cricket team to win three out of the four bilateral series and proved his ability to deliver consistent results as a captain.

Given his track record, the former Indian wicketkeeper-batter believes that Pandya deserved captaincy in shaping India’s T20I future. However, Hardik has been delivering consistently for the Indian team despite stripping off the leadership roles.

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Don’t know why Hardik was stripped of his vice-captaincy: Dinesh Karthik

Dinesh Karthik was quoted as saying by Cricbuzz: “I really don’t know. I don’t know why he (Hardik) was stripped of his vice-captaincy. I don’t see any reason to. They have done well. They have won in the bilaterals that he was the vice-captain. Not a clue.”

Notably, when Suryakumar Yadav was named India’s T20I captain, the chief selector, Ajit Agarkar, revealed that they needed someone who’s available more often than not, and that’s why Pandya didn’t get the nod. Hardik’s fitness issue played a major role in deciding his fate as captain.

It remains uncertain whether Pandya will return to the ODI squad for the upcoming England series. He last played an ODI match in the ODI World Cup 2023 against Bangladesh in Pune before being ruled out of the tournament due to an injury. However, he took part in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy 2024-25 to prove his fitness for the 50-over format