Not Gautam Gambhir! Ajit Agarkar stopped Hardik Pandya from becoming India T20I captain

Hardik Pandya remains a match-winner, and yet again, the all-rounder contributed significantly in India’s historic T20 World Cup 2026 in front of the home crowd at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, where they crushed New Zealand by 96 runs in the final to lift the third title.

The star all-rounder delivered strong performances with both bat and ball throughout the T20 World Cup 2026. In 9 matches, Pandya scored 217 runs and also picked up 9 wickets, apart from his stunning fielding efforts, and proved to be one of India’s most valuable players.

Hardik Pandya targets more ICC glory for India

After the T20 World Cup glory, the 32-year-old believes that he still has as many as 10 years left in international cricket. Pandya has set a big goal for himself, as he wants to help India win 10 ICC trophies in the coming years. He has already won multiple ICC trophies in his career.

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However, Hardik Pandya was one of the most deserving candidates for India’s T20 captaincy, and even he had that honor for some time, but he failed to get that crown on a full-time basis.

After Rohit Sharma retired from T20I cricket after leading India to the 2024 T20 World Cup, everyone expected Pandya to take charge of the team, and he looked like the obvious choice.

Ajit Agarkar made Suryakumar Yadav India's T20 captain over Hardik Pandya!!

However, the Indian chief selector Ajit Agarkar did not agree with that idea, despite the head coach Gautam Gambhir and his supporting staff being in favor of Hardik Pandya. But Agarkar reportedly pushed strongly for Suryakumar Yadav, as he felt the batter was the right man to guide India in T20Is.

At first, Indian selectors Subrato Banerjee, S. Sharath, Salil Ankola, and SS Das did not agree with Agarkar, but the chief selector explained that the team needed a captain who would almost always be part of the playing XI in every match, so he rejected the captaincy for Pandya.

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'He is a deserving candidate'

Eventually, the other selectors agreed and Suryakumar Yadav became India’s T20 captain, and Pandya was not even given the role of vice-captain, which left many furious at the selection committee. That role was served by Shubman Gill and Axar Patel on different occasions.

Ajit Agarkar told the team management, as quoted by The Indian Express: “One of the main issues discussed was that you want a captain who is likely to play all the games. We think he (Suryakumar) is a deserving candidate.”

Will Suryakumar Yadav replace Hardik Pandya as Mumbai Indians captain?

Meanwhile, a fresh captaincy storm has started around the Mumbai Indians ahead of the next edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The tournament will begin on March 28, but the biggest talking point right now is the leadership of the five-time champions.

There have been reports that Suryakumar could become MI’s new captain. The buzz became stronger after he led India to the T20 World Cup 2026 title. His strong presence in the dressing room sparked the buzz. However, Hardik remains the captain of the MI presently.

There is no official word on the buzz. Notably, the star all-rounder took charge before the 2024 season when he replaced long-time leader Rohit Sharma, who won five IPL titles for MI.