Former Indian cricket player Robin Uthappa believes that Hardik Pandya should not be upset about not being named captain of the Indian team and should focus on the bigger picture. Uthappa mentioned that, from his personal knowledge of Hardik, he believes Hardik would understand that the decision was made with his best interests in mind. Following the hiring of new coach Gautam Gambhir, Pandya was not given any leadership positions in the limited-overs formats, with his fitness and availability cited as the main reasons by chief selector Ajit Agarkar.
Uthappa added that not having the responsibility of captaincy could allow Hardik to have a longer career in international cricket.
“If I were in Hardik’s position, I would feel somewhat looked after,” Uthappa replied to a question.
“If I’m 34 or 35 and have had a history of injuries throughout my career, and someone takes a certain responsibility off my shoulders with the goal of prolonging my career, it gives me the best opportunity to serve my country for as long as I can. Considering that, I would actually say, this is the best thing for me,” Uthappa added.
“Having a personal understanding of Hardik Pandya to some extent, I believe he would agree with their perspective. They want a player of my caliber to serve the country for as long as possible, and I would be happy to do that,” Uthappa said.
“When you ask me to choose between the two options, I’d say I’d prefer to represent my country and win as many World Cup titles as possible, whether I’m the captain or just a team member,” Uthappa added.
Pandya is part of India’s team for both the T20 and ODI matches against Sri Lanka.
