"It was just an excuse"- Rashid Latif questions Ajit Agarkar's reasoning for not making Hardik Pandya India's T20I captain

Former Pakistan wicketkeeper Rashid Latif has disagreed with Indian chief selector Ajit Agarkar's explanation for Hardik Pandya not being named India's new T20I captain. The selectors instead went with Suryakumar Yadav, who will lead the Men in Blue in the upcoming three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka.

Agarkar explained that the selectors were looking for a captain available for all games and highlighted fitness concerns with Hardik. However, Latif feels Hardik has been written off without any proper reasoning and that the fitness factor was just an excuse to change the captain.

Rashid Latif was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times:

"No, here they (the claims) just hand him a certificate saying he isn't fit and there are concerns about his fitness. There are plenty of players who weren't super fit but still became great captains. So, I think it was just an excuse. Because if Surya wasn't around, then Rishabh (Pant) would have been the captain since you have to look at the future."

Hardik Pandya was the vice-captain of the victorious Indian team at the T20 World Cup 2024.

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K Srikkanth also showed his disappointment on Hardik Pandya's captaincy snub

Former Indian opener K Srikkanth had also voiced his opinion on Hardik Pandya not becoming Rohit Sharma's successor in T20Is. While he agreed that Hardik's captaincy wasn't great with the Mumbai Indians in IPL 2024, he highlighted how the all-rounder played all the games and bowled full throttle, thereby proving his fitness.

Srikkanth said on his YouTube channel:

"I think they have gone from the feedback of the dressing room. It must have probably been from the IPL. Fitness is something that I will not agree. He played the entire IPL. He also bowled. Yes, he might not have done well (in the IPL). That's another issue. Mumbai Indians didn't qualify. At the World Cup, he was the vice-captain and he played well. So, fitness is something that I won't agree with."

Srikkanth also found the reasoning of feedback from the dressing room inconclusive, claiming that the selectors needed to be more straightforward with their explanation.