Jay Shah’s comments came in the presence of Chief selector Ajit Agarkar, head coach Rahul Dravid and Rohit himself
It will be Rohit Sharma and not Hardik Pandya who will be leading the Indian team at the upcoming T20 World Cup in USA-West Indies. BCCI Secretary Jay Shah, speaking on the occasion of renaming of the Saurashtra Cricket Association stadium to Niranjan Shah stadium in Rajkot on Wednesday declared that Rohit would be the captain at the T20 World Cup.
Rohit Sharma was in full flow in Bengaluru racing to a record 5th T20I century(PTI)
“We may have lost the final of the 2023 ODI World Cup. But we won hearts there by winning 10 matches in a row. I would like to say that I am confident that India will lift the 2024 T20 World Cup under Rohit Sharma’s captaincy at Barbados,” Shah said.
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Shah’s comments came in the presence of Chief selector Ajit Agarkar, head coach Rahul Dravid and Rohit himself.
India’s white-ball captaincy has been up for debate with the selectors naming Hardik Pandya as skipper in January 2023. He had proved his leadership credentials in the Indian Premier League, having led the Gujarat Titans to the title in their maiden season (2022).
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GT, under Hardik, also made the IPL final in 2023 and his captaincy was impressive. The team looked like a happy unit and he formed a great partnership with coach Ashish Nehra. At the same, Rohit’s IPL form declined substantially. The change of guard seemed to be a natural progression.
But Rohit’s form picked up during the ODI World Cup even as Hardik picked up another major injury during the tournament. It was a freak injury but it has kept the Baroda cricketer out of action ever since.
“Hardik will continue to be the vice-captain at the T20 World Cup. Hardik got injured at the ODI World Cup, so who else would we hand over the captaincy to? The manner in which Rohit batted against Afghanistan; I don’t think we should question the decision. Rahul Dravid will be the coach of the team at the World Cup,” Shah said.
MANDATE TO PLAY RANJI TROPHY
In light of a number of players skipping the current round of Ranji trophy, Shah said they are putting a policy in place to put an end to this practice.
“I am going to write a letter, which I have already communicated over the phone that when your coach, captain or the Chief selector wants you to play red-ball (Ranji trophy), you have to play,” he said.
While Ishan Kishan has been in the news for the same, Shah said the move was for all players in general.
“We won’t make it mandatory for players whose body do not support. We don’t want them to lose their white-ball career in pursuit of red-ball,” Shah added, indicating that the rule may not apply to Hardik Pandya. The Baroda all-rounder last played a Test match in 2018.
“This applies to those who are fit and young. It will all be based on advice that comes from the National Cricket Academy,” Shah said. “People will have to follow the advice because the suggestion has come from chairman of selection committee. Or else, I will give him a free hand to take calls on future selections. The players don’t decide the players future, the selectors do.”
BCCI SUPPORTIVE OF VIRAT
Shah added that the Indian board is supportive of Virat Kohli during his personal break. “If a player seeks personal leave in a career spanning 15 years it’s not an issue. Virat is not a player who would ask for leave without reason. We should be backing our player.”
On managing player workload during IPL in lead up to the World Cup, he said, “BCCI is the supreme body. Whatever BCCI decides the franchises have to agree to. Player workload is always managed.”
