Feels like Hardik Pandya will lead Team India in 2024 T20 World Cup as well, says former Indian opener

On Wednesday (July 05), the Ajit Agarkar-led BCCI selection committee picked a 15-man squad for India's five-match T20I series versus West Indies, in the Caribbean island. The five T20Is will get underway on August 03 as Hardik Pandya will lead a young side. The squad features several young talents who rose to the occasion in IPL 2023 as the likes of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Tilak Verma, and Mukesh Kumar were inducted, whereas the likes of Yuzvendra Chahal, Axar Patel and Sanju Samson have returned.

Although many have raised concerns over the omission of Rinku Singh and Rahul Tripathi, the likes of Washington Sundar, Shivam Mavi, Prithvi Shaw and Jitesh Sharma also could not find a place. Moreover, senior pros such as Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have continued to remain absent from the T20I squad as it seems certain that selectors have entrusted Hardik Pandya to lead the side in the shortest format for the future. Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra reviewed the squad on his YouTube channel and feels that Hardik is being considered to lead India in next year's T20 World Cup in West Indies and the USA.

"Hardik Pandya, who had been given the captaincy after the T20 World Cup - it seems like that's now the final fixture, that Hardik Pandya will lead the Indian T20 team for times to come, which means until the upcoming World Cup," Aakash Chopra said in a video shared on his YouTube channel.

"I feel they had already moved in that direction and it is still the same, nothing has changed. None of the seniors have been picked. KL Rahul is unavailable but now it is extended that you have not played Rohit and Kohli since the World Cup," Chopra added.

India's five-match T20I series versus the two-time champions West Indies will kick off on August 03 and conclude on August 13. Soon after, Hardik & Co. will also feature in three T20Is versus Ireland, in Dublin, before the focus shifts entirely to the 2023 ODI World Cup at home.

India's T20I squad for WI series:Ishan Kishan (wicket-keeper), Shubman Gill, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Tilak Varma, Surya Kumar Yadav (vice-captain), Sanju Samson (wicket-keeper), Hardik Pandya (captain), Axar Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal, Kuldeep Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Umran Malik, Avesh Khan, and Mukesh Kumar.