Fitness concerns went against Hardik Pandya’s captaincy claims, says chief selector Ajit Agarkar

Chairman of the senior selection committee, Ajit Agarkar during a pre-Sri Lanka tour press conference in a suburban hotel in Mumbai on Monday morning. PIC/Satej Shinde

India all-rounder Hardik Pandya's fitness concerns went against him when Ajit Agarkar's national selection committee took a decision on who should lead India in the three-match T20I series against Sri Lanka starting on July 27 at Pallekele.

Pandya was Rohit Sharma's deputy during India's T20 World Cup triumph in USA and West Indies recently. However, the national selectors preferred attacking batsman Suryakumar Yadav over Pandya for the captaincy job in the shortest format. Rohit quit the T20I format of the game after the World Cup.

"As regards to Hardik, he is still a very important player for us. Those [his] sorts of skillsets are very difficult to find. Fitness obviously has been a challenge for him over the last two years. It's not rushed at the moment, and we want someone who is available for all matches," Agarkar said during the team's Sri Lanka tour pre-departure press conference on Monday.

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Mumbai boy Suryakumar, who had led India in seven T20Is, winning five, once again was given the task. Agarkar said the ICC World No.2 batsman deserved the captaincy job. While opener Shubman Gill, who led the young Indian team to a 4-1 T20I series win over Zimbabwe recently will be Suryakumar's deputy.

"We get a lot of feedback from the dressing room a lot. He [Surya] has a good cricket brain. He is still one of the best T20I batters in the world. You want a captain who can play all games," Agarkar explained.