Despite being named the new T20I captain, Surya kumar Yadav was left out of the ODI selection, something that BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar candidly acknowledged. Before the upcoming tour of Sri Lanka, the BCCI made some audacious choices, selecting Surya as the new T20I captain instead of Hardik Pandya, but he was not selected for the ODI squad.
Since India’s loss to Australia in Ahmedabad during the 2023 World Cup final, Surya has not appeared in an ODI. The flashy batsman had a lackluster competition; after drawing criticism for his poor shot selection in the championship match, doubts were voiced about his ODI batting experience.
Agarkar clarified that Surya is just considered a T20I player at this time and is not part of India’s ODI plans. The former India pacer claimed that the team management was happy with Shreyas Iyer, KL Rahul, and Rishabh Pant in the middle order; hence, Surya’s name was not even discussed for the ODI squad.
“No, we haven’t discussed Surya (for ODIs) at this point. Shreyas (Iyer) is back, KL (Rahul) is back. They have had great World Cups (ODI). Rishabh (Pant) is back as well. So there is some real quality through that middle order. So at this point Surya is a T20I player,” Agarkar stated during India’s pre-departure press conference.
The differences between Surya’s ODI and T20I scores are striking. With a lackluster average of 25.76, he has scored 773 runs in 37 one-day internationals for India.
Before giving Surya significant responsibility, the BCCI received positive feedback about him from the players’ locker room, according to the head selector of the BCCI. Surya was a worthy candidate for the T20I captaincy.
“Why was Surya Kumar Yadav made captain? Because he is one of the deserving candidates. The one we know has been around the dressing room over the last one year, you get feedback from the dressing room a lot. He has got a good cricketing brain and he is still one of the best T20 batters in the world,” Agarkar remarked during the press conference.
Surya Kumar Yadav has already arrived in Sri Lanka with the Indian team, which will play three T20Is and as many ODIs against the hosts beginning July 27. It will also signal the beginning of a new era in Indian cricket as Gautam Gambhir takes over as the team’s new head coach.
