Hardik Pandya Shares Warm Hug With Suryakumar Yadav; Watch Video

Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav were cordial in their first meeting, amidst rumors of a rift between the two star players of the Indian team. This comes after Hardik Pandya was snubbed for India’s T20I captaincy and Suryakumar Yadav was named successor of Rohit Sharma permanently.

Hardik was regarded as the leading candidate to take over the T20I captaincy after Rohit Sharma declared his retirement from the shortest format following the World Cup victory.

The all-rounder was India’s unofficial T20I captain for over a year, from December 2022 to October 2023, but that changed after he sustained an ankle injury during the group stages of the ODI World Cup last year.

Gautam Gambhir, the new coach, and Ajit Agarkar, the chairman of selectors, wanted a captain who would be available for all future T20Is. They were skeptical that Hardik was that man, given his dismal injury history.

Given Hardik’s history of ailments and the need for frequent rests, as well as his role as India’s leading pace all-rounder, he was passed up for captaincy, and Suryakumar Yadav was appointed the replacement.

Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav shared a warm hug as they met before Indian team’s departure to Sri Lanka

Everything is well with Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya. Not that there were any doubts, but after what happened in the last few days, which resulted in Surya being promoted as India’s new T20I captain, surpassing Hardik, the vice-captain of India’s T20 World Cup-winning team, there was the occasional critical eye seeking for something to boost social media attention. Hardik ensured there was none.

Hardik and the newly anointed T20I skipper were like brothers in arms at their first meeting following the selectors’ decision to chart a course for India’s T20Is in the post-Rohit, Kohli era, with Suryakumar at the helm.

In a video shared by BCCI, Hardik was seen exchanging a heartfelt hug with Suryakumar at the Mumbai airport before departing for Colombo. The members of India’s T20 squad gathered at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport on Monday afternoon to depart for a three-match series beginning on July 27.

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