Jasprit Bumrah expected to give tough competition to Hardik Pandya for ODI vice-captaincy

Indian pacer Jasprit Bumrah, along with dynamic all-rounder Hardik Pandya, is being tipped as a potential candidate for the vice-captaincy of the Indian cricket team. This speculation arises ahead of key tournaments such as the Asia Cup and the ODI World Cup, beginning on October 5.

Pandya, who has been assigned the regular role as captain for T20Is, may face some competition from Bumrah, who recently made an intense re-entrance to international cricket against Ireland in the ongoing T20I series.

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A BCCI source told PTI that in terms of seniority, Bumrah holds an edge over Pandya due to his previous stint as Test captain in 2022. Moreover, the pacer served as vice-captain in ODIs prior to Pandya, during the tour of South Africa. The source also pointed out that it wouldn’t be unexpected if Bumrah was appointed as Rohit Sharma’s deputy in the ODI format for both Asia Cup and the World Cup.

“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. “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 captaincy in Ireland instead of Ruturaj,” said the source to PTI.

Bumrah was adjudged as the Player Of The Match during his captaincy debut in T20Is as India defeated Ireland by two runs via the DLS method.

On the other hand, Pandya’s leadership skills aren’t to be underestimated. He displayed his prowess as the skipper of Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League (IPL), leading them to glory in their first appearance in 2022 and a strong second in 2023. Despite Pandya’s success, the prominent role Ashish Nehra played in Gujarat Titan’s achievement cannot be overlooked.

Concerning the national team, Pandya lost his first bilateral series as T20I captain in the West Indies, which raised a lot of questions about his strategic decisions, as not utilising Axar Patel in bowling or bringing Mukesh Kumar on during the crucial final phase, were widely criticised.