Back to the rise, star cricketer Hardik Pandya is all set to captain the Indian contingent for the T20 International series in Sri Lanka which has been postponed by a day to July 28.
However, his captaincy will not see light in the ODI that is scheduled from August 2 to August 7 in Colombo, Sri Lanka. "Hardik Pandya was India's T2O vice-captain under Rohit Sharma. He is completely fit and available for the three-match T20I series and will lead the side," a senior BCCI source shared on conditions of anonymity.
The T20I squad for the series is expected to be announced in the next couple of days. The match against Sri Lanka will run from July 28 in Pallekele, followed by the ODIs from August 2 to 7 in Colombo.
With uncertainty on the rise for the vice-captaincy roles, the winning captain Shubhamn Gill against Zimbabwe in a 4-1 red ball series and the catcher Surya Kumar Yadav are on the roll.
For the ODIs in August, Pandya has reportedly applied for a leave citing personal reasons. Additionally, he has communicated the same to regular skipper Rohit Sharma, who is also also taking a break from the series. The spot is now expected to be filled by KL Rahul and Shubhman Gill. Formerly led in the last ODI series in South Africa.
Concerns regarding domestic availability were cleared by BCCI Secretary, Jay Shah stating, “Star cricketers will make themselves available for domestic engagements when they are free from national duty. But exceptions will be made for the likes of Rohit, Virat Kohli and pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah.”
BCCI has also expressed interest for Test specialists to play at least one if not a couple of Duleep Trophy games in August as a precursor to the Tests against Bangladesh and New Zealand.
“This time there is no zonal selection committee for the Duleep Trophy. Only the national selection committee will pick Duleep teams. All Test team contenders will be picked. For Rohit, Virat and Bumrah, it will be their choice if they want to play or not," the anonymous source added.
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