Hardik Pandya is currently enjoying a regular captaincy run in T20Is and a vice-captaincy tenure in ODIs as he is touted as the future leader of India in limited-overs cricket. There have been speculations over who will take the captaincy reigns from Rohit Sharma once the 36-year-old decides to give a chance to someone else. Pandya has led India in five T20I series and has also replaced KL Rahul as vice-captain in ODIs. However, there seems to be a new candidate for the vice-captaincy post for the upcoming Asia Cup and the World Cup.
According to a report in PTI, Jasprit Bumrah is set to give Pandya a tough run in the ODI vice-captaincy role. A BCCI source told the news agency that Bumrah is more senior in terms of leadership and there is a reason why he is leading the team in the Ireland series. "If you look in terms of leadership seniority, Bumrah is ahead of Pandya as he captained the Test team in 2022. He has also been ODI vice-captain before Pandya during the ODI tour of South Africa," a BCCI source in the know of things told PTI on conditions of anonymity.
The source further even claimed that one should not be surprised to see Bumrah being Rohit's deputy in the Asia Cup and the World Cup. "Don't be surprised if you see Bumrah being made ODI deputy to Rohit for both Asia Cup and World Cup. There is a reason why he was handed the captaincy in Ireland instead of Ruturaj," it added.
Jasprit Bumrah led the Indian team in the first T20I against Ireland. The Men in Blue won the contest by 2 runs (DLS method). He also led the team in a Test match against England in 2022, which India lost. On the other hand, Pandya suffered his first T20I series loss in West Indies. He has been successful in leading his IPL franchise Gujarat Titans to a 2022 IPL win and a 2023 second-placed finish. India is set to choose their squad for the Asia Cup on August 21 and the decision over Rohit's deputy shall be made there.
