IND vs AFG T20Is: BCCI face selection dilemma as captain candidates remain unavailable

With India’s squad selection announcement for the home T20I series against Afghanistan just around the corner, the BCCI selectors face a dilemma over naming a captain and the squad around. Considering both captain candidates (Hardik Pandya and Suryakumar Yadav) are recovering from respective injuries, the selection committee is undecided between picking a new skipper (looking at the future) and recalling veteran Rohit Sharma for the upcoming series.

Per the latest reports, the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee has several factors to consider while picking the squad for Afghanistan T20Is. They have a choice to make between looking at preparing (the final 15) for the upcoming 2024 T20 World Cup (in June in the West Indies and the USA) or naming a mix of experienced and younger players for this series and waiting for the IPL 2024 to end to finalise team for the marquee event.

Following the conclusion of the South Africa series, which ended with India winning their maiden Test at the Newlands in Cape Town, Cricbuzz reported that the board’s top brass approached veterans Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli about their plans for the T20Is – to which both have agreed for a return to the side for the first time in more than a year.

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While the selection committee’s mood is leaning towards picking a team for the future – with Shubman Gill likely to lead in everyone’s absence, the selectors are aware of Rohit Sharma’s credentials as a captain, especially in the white-ball format.

Meanwhile, as things stand, chief selector Agarkar is in South Africa with colleagues Shiv Sundar Das and Salil Ankola and will join Subrata Banerjee and S Sharath in India to take a final call on this. Rahul Dravid, the head coach, will have a crucial role to play in this.

Pandya to return during IPL 2024

The stand-in captain in the T20Is, Hardik Pandya, suffered an ankle injury during the Bangladesh game in the 2023 World Cup and has been out since. Though he was expected to get fit in time for the Afghanistan series, Pandya will now return during IPL 2024, starting on March 22.

Following the conclusion of the home World Cup, IPL franchise Mumbai Indians roped in Pandya (during the trade) and named him the new captain for the upcoming season.
Pandya’s teammate, Suryakumar Yadav, is also out with an injury and will take around a month to recover.