According to speculations, Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer are the leading contenders to succeed Rohit Sharma as India’s next ODI captain when the renowned player retires. Rohit is 38 years old, and while he has indicated a desire to captain India in the 2027 ODI World Cup, his form and fitness have left some supporters concerned about his future.
While Shubman has taken over as India’s red-ball cricket captain, he may face heavy competition from Shreyas for the ODI captaincy. However, Suresh Raina believes Hardik Pandya has the potential to excel as India’s white-ball cricket captain.
The former India batter also compared Pandya to luminaries such as Kapil Dev and MS Dhoni.
“Shubman Gill. However, they decide. Gill any day (over Iyer). I still feel in white-ball cricket, Hardik Pandya will do miracles. As a captain in white-ball cricket. Gill can be. He should be. He has the experience of Kapil paaji. He is a very positive guy. He is a player’s captain. He gives me glimpses of MS Dhoni. I like how he conducts himself on the field,” said Raina in an interaction on Shubhankar Mishra’s YouTube channel.
Raina names all-time CSK XI
Raina played an important role in helping the Chennai Super Kings win five Indian Premier League (IPL) titles. He was asked to name his ideal Playing XI for the Men in Yellow. While naming his all-time XI, Raina had special praise for left-arm spinner Shadab Jakati.
“Murali Vijay, Matthew Hayden, Michael Hussey, Suresh Raina, Subramaniam Badrinath, Albie Morkel, Doug Bollinger, Shadab Jakati, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni, L Balaji, Mohit Sharma. If you want an impact player, then I would keep Muralitharan Sir,” said Raina.
“I think the X-factor Shadab Jakati was; he didn’t get the recognition. He performed very well when we won in 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013. Whatever we qualified, he did exceptionally well,” he added.
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