Hardik Pandya's medical certificate demanded on Open Platform from Ajit Agarkar after press conference dialogue

Former Pakistan cricketer Rashid Latif slammed India head coach Gautam Gambhir and chief selector Ajit Agarkar for stripping Hardik Pandya of T20I captaincy. Rashid Latif mentioned that the fitness concerns are just an excuse for not making Hardik Pandya captain after Rohit Sharma retires from T20Is.

A debate about Team India's T20I captain emerged after Rohit Sharma retired from the format. The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) made a bold decision by naming Suryakumar Yadav over Hardik Pandya as the new T20I captain. The BCCI's move stirred discussion in the cricketing community.

Hardik was the vice-captain of the Indian team during the T20 World Cup 2024, where the Men in Blue secured the trophy by defeating South Africa in the final match. Notably, Panyda captained the Indian team in most of the T20I matches in 2023. He also led the Gujarat Titans (GT) to a maiden title in the IPL 2022.

It is worth mentioning that Hardik has an impressive record as captain, with 10 wins in 16 T20I matches. Suryakumar Yadav was named T20I captain for the upcoming series against Sri Lanka. Shubman Gill was picked as vice-captain as the team management wants to groom a younger player for the future.

It Was Just An Excuse - Rashid Latif

In a conversation with the Caught Behind YouTube channel, Rashid Latif questioned the BCCI's decision to ignore Hardik Pandya for India's T20I captaincy. Latif said that many successful captains were not extremely fit. Rashid added that Rishabh Pant would have been considered for captaincy in the future.

"No, here they (the claims) just hand him a certificate saying he isn't fit and there are concerns about his fitness. There are plenty of players who weren't super fit but still became great captains. So, I think it was just an excuse. Because if Surya wasn't around, then Rishabh (Pant) would have been the captain since you have to look at the future," Rashid Latif said.

The Baroda-born cricketer delivered outstanding performances in the T20 World Cup. Pandya scored 144 runs at an impressive average of 48 with a strike rate of 151.57 and took 11 wickets at an average of 17.36. He played a crucial role in India's final win against South Africa with figures of 3/20 in his three overs.

In a press conference before India's Sri Lanka tour, Ajit Agarkar revealed the reason behind Suryakumar Yadav's appointment as T20I captain. Agarkar stated that the captain needs to be available for more matches. The chief selector acknowledged that Hardik Pandya's fitness issues played a role in the decision.

India's cricket team will start their Sri Lanka tour with a three-match T20I series, followed by a three-match ODI series. The opening T20I is scheduled to be played at Pallekele International Cricket Stadium on Saturday, July 27. The remaining two T20I matches will be played at the same venue on July 28 and July 30.

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