India name NEW Vice-Captain after Hardik Pandya gets ruled out of World Cup 2023: In another development, a day prior to India’s litmus test fixture against South Africa, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) announced a new vice-captain for the Indian team competing in the ICC World Cup 2023. The update was made public after all-rounder Hardik Pandya was deemed unfit to partake in the remainder of the ongoing Cricket World Cup.
The BCCI while announcing the setback for the Indian team, subsequently named wicketkeeper batter KL Rahul as the new vice-captain of the team for the time being. KL Rahul will continue working alongside skipper Rohit Sharma for the remaining fixtures of the ODI World Cup 2023.
Team India still has two more league-stage games (against South Africa and Netherlands) to go before the much-important semi-finals and the finals, if they qualify. KL Rahul will act as Rohit Sharma’s deputy for those matches.
“The BCCI has appointed KL Rahul as the vice-captain of the Indian team for the remainder of the World Cup. He was informed about it on Saturday morning by the chairman of the selection committee, Ajit Agarkar, who is travelling with the team,” a BCCI official told The Indian Express.
Reportedly, it was learnt that ace pacer Jasprit Bumrah was also in contention to be India’s new vice-captain, however, KL Rahul eventually pipped Bumrah as the former was a wicketkeeper, who gets a comprehensive view of the match and can better make decisions. Being a leader and a wicketkeeper simultaneously, one can better rotate his bowlers and fielders and the glovesman is the best person who can assess what the opposition is trying to do.
Now bestowed with the added responsibility, KL Rahul will subsequently join all the strategic meetings of the team and will have a significant say in the selection of the team.
World Cup 2023: Prasidh Krishna drafted into Team India
Meanwhile, Hardik Pandya’s loss could turn out to be an unfortunate episode for Team India. The all-rounder brings stability to the side with his batting and bowling abilities. So far India had to compromise on the number of bowlers they can pick for a game due to the unavailability.
The absence of Hardik Pandya forced India to include a batter and a pacer individually in India’s playing 11, at the cost of removing Shardul Thakur from the team. Now India plays cut to cut with just five mainstream bowlers and six batters.
To cover for Hardik’s bowling abilities, the BCCI has brought in Prasidh Krishna for the remainder of the World Cup 2023.
Team India’s next assignment in the ongoing World Cup 2023 is scheduled against the formidable South Africans on November 5. The game is touted to be the biggest clash of the tournament as both the contesting teams are in great form.
While India has remained unbeaten so far in the World Cup 2023, South Africa has only had a solitary loss and barring that they have been simply sensational. There is no stopping the Protea force in any department.
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