Aakash Chopra does not believe Hardik Pandya will be named Indian skipper for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2024 due to his fitness issues. Hardik Pandya is yet to return to competitive cricket since he suffered an ankle injury in India’s ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 clash against Bangladesh. He is reported to be unavailable for the upcoming T20I series against Afghanistan and will feature directly in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024.

Hardik Pandya has been leading the team in T20Is since the conclusion of the T20 World Cup 2022, as reported by the BCCI. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli focus more on tests and ODIs. However, since his injury, the T20I team has been led by Suraykumar Yadav, who was named as Hardik’s replacement in the absence of the two experienced campaigners. Hardik Pandya will also lead Mumbai Indians in IPL 2024.

Aakash Chopra opined in a video on his YouTube channel that Hardik Pandya’s health issues could keep him out of contention for the captain’s role in the upcoming T20 World Cup. He elaborated, “Hardik probably won’t be the captain because there is a fitness issue. You are not currently playing. You sprained your ankle at the World Cup. You are not playing the Afghanistan series and you are not playing Tests in any case, so you will immediately play the IPL. It goes against him.”

The reputed commentator expects Rohit Sharma to lead India in the mega T20 event despite the team’s disappointing batting performances under his captaincy in the last edition. Aakash Chopra said: “I feel that Rohit Sharma will take the T20I captaincy and will also be the captain for the T20 World Cup 2024. If you had asked this question after the T20 World Cup 2022, it was almost certain that he would not be the captain, considering the way that the team performed, as we scored 60 runs in the first 10 overs.”

Aakash Chopra believes Rohit Sharma can lead the team again after disappointing T20 World Cup 2022

Aakash Chopra pointed out that Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul were India’s top three in the 2022 World Cup and they played almost all opponents. He acknowledged that if a call had been made during that time, some of the big names would have been immediately dropped from the team due to their poor performance in the 2022 T20 World Cup.

Aakash Chopra pointed out that Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and KL Rahul have returned with their performances in the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023. He explained: “However, time passed and none of these players played T20Is for India. The World ODI happened, where you played very well and reached the final. Rohit Sharma had explosive starts, Virat Kohli was the Player of the Tournament and KL Rahul did an incredible job in the order.”

The former India opener believes that India’s squad for the ICC T20 World Cup 2024 will be a bit identical to the team that played in the last edition of the tournament. Aakash Chopra stated: “Suddenly you say that everyone is doing well. So I think, given recent form, it will be an almost identical team. Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli will be there and I won’t be surprised if KL Rahul is also there.”

The T20 World Cup is scheduled to begin on June 1 and India will play its first match on June 5 against Canada. The main clash between India and Pakistan will be played on June 9 in New York, where a 34,000-seat stadium is supposed to be built. The squad for the T20 World Cup will be announced during the IPL and will likely consist of a mix of some new players and experienced campaigners. It is a big relief for the Indian team that Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were available for the tournament.