Kapil Dev, the Indian cricket legend, has made his pick for India’s next captain. With Rohit Sharma nearing the end of his career, questions about the future captain have been looming around, and his vote goes to none other than Hardik Pandya.
Hardik Pandya’s rise in cricket has been nothing short of a miracle. He evolved from an ordinary player in the Baroda domestic circuit to a key player for the Mumbai Indians in the IPL. He has consistently proved his brilliance in the game with his all-rounder abilities, which make him a significant player for both the IPL and the national team.
Kapil Dev, who led India to its first-ever World Cup victory in 1983, recently shared in a statement, “To me, Hardik Pandya is my white ball captain. There are many contenders for the post, but Pandya is my choice.”
While Dev earlier doubted his abilities due to fitness issues, he now seems to favor Pandya as a strong candidate for leadership in white-ball cricket. And rightly so, as Pandya has proved his excellence as a captain during the T20Is, securing 10 victories and one tie. However, he wasn’t chosen to be the T20I captain following Rohit Sharma’s retirement from the format. Suryakumar Yadav was chosen instead for the role, while Shubhman Gill was appointed as the vice-captain during the ICC Champions Trophy 2025.
Despite his impressive resume, Pandya faces challenges as a potential full-time captain. However, Kapil Dev seemed to back him and quoted, “Pandya is relatively young and can build a team around him for the next ICC events.”
Kapil Dev on Multiple Captains
Pandya is currently the vice-captain across all formats, regarding which Kapil Dev shared, “Ideally, Hardik should also play Test cricket, and since he isn’t playing, India will need multiple captains for the three formats,” highlighting that India will need multiple captains for different formats.
No matter the impressive run, Pandya is still considered not-fit for a full-time captaincy role. Some critics argue that for someone who’s been tagged as an all-rounder, he has limited ability to bowl consistently. Nonetheless, Hardik Pandya represents a new era in Indian cricket. As India looks forward to future challenges, including the upcoming ICC tournaments, he could be the leader who drives the team to victories that one can’t forget.
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