The 2022 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) witnessed the rise to prominence of several Indian captains, some of whom were taking charge of their teams for the very first time in their professional careers. Among them, Rishabh Pant is the one who has been given the responsibility of captaining the team at the international level. He will make his debut in this role during the current five-match Twenty20 International series that India is playing against South Africa.
Hardik Pandya will lead India in their upcoming two-match Twenty20 International series in Ireland. India has appointed Pandya as Pant’s vice-captain for the series. Since the beginning of the 2022 Indian Premier League (IPL), when it was unexpectedly revealed that the all-rounder would be the captain of the Gujarat Titans, the all-rounder’s status has increased significantly. However, he more than repaid the faith that was placed in him by the franchise’s leadership by guiding the team to the IPL championship in their very first season of competition.
Pandya was not a candidate for the position of vice-captain of the Indian squad until KL Rahul sustained an injury, which resulted in Rishabh Pant being promoted to the position of captain and Pandya being promoted to the position of his deputy. Pandya has been named captain of the team for the Ireland trip, but former India opener Wasim Jaffer has said that the all-rounder should be chosen as India’s first option vice-captain instead of Pandya.
Wasim Jaffer wants Hardik Pandya to be the deputy of Rohit Sharma in limited-overs cricket
“He is deserving of it. Going ahead, it would be in India’s best interest to give him significant consideration for a starring role in white-ball cricket. In particular, if Rohit Sharma is unavailable, I believe that Hardik Pandya needs to be the first option considered. Given how he directed his team throughout the Indian Premier League and how his performances were received, it is clear that he enjoys his role as captain. Going ahead, he is certainly my number one pick after Rohit Sharma,” Jaffer said.
As a result of Rohit Sharma being benched for the present five-match Twenty20 International series against South Africa, Rahul was originally appointed as the captain of the Indian team. Even though Rahul has not yet been given the title of vice-captain for India in any of the available forms, he is widely regarded as the team’s second-best option after the actual captain.
“In white-ball cricket, if Rohit is selected for the team, I would prefer Hardik to serve as the vice-captain. He is the kind of player that takes pride in their work and brings out the best in others as well as himself. Everyone is comfortable, and as a result, he coaxes the best performance out of the other players. Therefore, that makes him my second choice behind Rohit Sharma,” Jaffer added.
