Team India T20 Captain: 'Selectors Will Decide' - Jay Shah on Hardik Pandya Taking Over From Rohit Sharma

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Rohit Sharma announced his retirement from T20Is moments after India defeated South Africa by seven runs in the final in Barbados to clinch the T20 World Cup, ending an 11-year wait for an ICC trophy.

As Rohit moves on, the opening slot and the important captain spot becomes vacant in the T20 setup. A new face will take over the role of captain in the shortest format with all-rounder Hardik Pandya being the prime candidate.

Pandya has already filled in when Rohit missed action after Team India's last T20 World Cup till, the senior star returned to compete in the format earlier this year against Afghanistan.

While his appointment remains very likely, BCCI Secretary Jay Shah on Monday (July 1) revealed that a decision on whether Pandya succeeds Rohit as the next T20 captain will be taken solely by the selectors.

"Captaincy will be decided by the selectors and we will announce it after discussing with them. You asked about Hardik, there were lot of questions over his form but we and selectors showed faith in him and he proved himself," Shah told select media in Bridgetown.

Pandya served as Rohit's deputy in the bygone T20 World Cup 2024, where India ended an 11-year agonising wait for the ICC title. After losing two ICC finals over the last 12 months, the trophy drought finally ended in the Caribbean.

Pandya, who replaced Rohit as Mumbai Indians captain, had drawn a lot of flak from the team's own fans and the team finished bottom of the table with just 4 wins in 14 matches.

The 30-year-old, however, has a decent record overall as captain, helping Gujarat Titans win the Indian Premier League in their very first appearance and followed that with a runner up finish before moving back to Mumbai Indians ahead of the IPL 2024.

Even in T20Is, Pandya has a 66.67 winning percentage, guiding India to 10 wins in 16 matches with 5 matches ending in defeats and 1 in No Result. He first led the team during the 2022 tour to New Zealand.

Apart from Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah, KL Rahul, Ruturaj Gaikwad have led the Indian team in T20Is, while Shubman Gill is set for his first international captaincy assignment in the upcoming 5-match series in Zimbabwe.