IPL 2024: Not Rahul or Hardik! Harbhajan Singh feels Sanju Samson should be India's next T20I captain

After Rajasthan Royals (RR) beat Mumbai Indians (MI) by nine wickets, in chase of 180, during match 38 of IPL 2024, former Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh lavished huge praise on Sanju Samson and feels he should be part of India's 2024 T20 World Cup squad. The squad is set to be announced by the Ajit Agarkar-led BCCI selection committee by end of this month. The mega event kicks off soon after IPL 2024, in West Indies and USA on June 1. Further, Harbhajan also made a bold claim, stating that Samson should be groomed as India's next T20I captain.

Harbhajan took to X, formely Twitter, and wrote, “Yashasvi Jaiswal’s knock is a proof of class is permanent. Form is temporary @ybj_19 and there shouldn’t be any debate about Keeper batsman. @IamSanjuSamson should walk in to the Indian team for T20 world cup and also groomed as a next T20 captain for India after Rohit . koi shak??? (any doubts)."

Riding on Sandeep Sharma's 5 for 18 and Yashasvi Jaiswal's 104 not out, RR beat MI by nine wickets at the Sawai Man Singh Stadium, Jaipur on Monday evening (April 22). While rain also made its presence felt in the game, it couldn't hamper RR's dominance as the one-time winners continue to march ahead in IPL 2024. After eight games, the table-toppers have won seven and are sitting at the top with 14 points. Speaking of Samson, the wicketkeeper-batter has led with aplomb, ably rotating his bowlers and making good field changes, whereas he is also the second-highest run-getter of the ongoing season, with 314 runs at an average of 62.80 and a strike-rate of 152.42 -- including3 fifties with a top score of 82*.

Courtesy of his form, Samson is a strong contender for the T20 WC. As far as India's T20I leadership, the 29-year-old is certainly showing all the signs to become the captain but has a long way to go before becoming a strong candidate. As of now, KL Rahul, Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Rishabh Pant and Shubman Gill are also some names being considered asIndia's next captain in white-ball format.