According to Ajit Agarkar, the head of the selection committee, concerns over Hardik Pandya's physical condition influenced the choice to hand the T20I captaincy to Suryakumar Yadav. This explanation has been openly questioned by former great Krisnamachari Srikkanth, who believes the fitness narrative is inaccurate.
Ajit Agarkar, the chairman of selectors, said that Hardik Pandya’s fitness is one of the key reasons for the selection committee’s choice to move on to Suryakumar Yadav as the T20I team captain. India’s legendary opener Krisnamachari Srikkanth isn’t convinced by Agarkar’s explanations given in the joint press conference with Gautam Gambhir, claiming Hardik was not spurned due to fitness concerns.
Srikkanth believes the decision was likely based on internal dressing room dynamics or perhaps issues that surfaced during the IPL. He flatly rejects the fitness argument, pointing out that Hardik played the entire IPL season. While he admits Hardik's performance with the Mumbai Indians wasn't great and the team failed to qualify, he reminds everyone that Hardik performed well as vice-captain during the World Cup. For Srikkanth, the fitness excuse simply doesn't hold water.
He expressed confusion over the mention of 'dressing room feedback,' stating that while Suryakumar is an exceptional player perfectly suited for leadership, the current justifications for removing Hardik feel vague and evasive. Srikkanth argues that the selectors should have been honest and simply stated they wanted a fresh start with Suryakumar as their long-term choice, rather than hiding behind ambiguous reasoning.
Drawing from his own experience as a former chairman, Srikkanth noted that he too has selected and dropped players and dealt with the resulting backlash. He admitted he wasn't perfect and made his own mistakes, but emphasized that the key is providing a transparent and honest explanation to the public. Meanwhile, India is set to face Sri Lanka in their first T20I on Saturday, July 7, at the Pallekele International Stadium.