IND vs AUS T20I series: Suryakumar Yadav or Ruturaj Gaikwad; who will lead the Men in Blue?

India is having a dream ODI World Cup 2023 so far and is looking a notch better than any other team in the tournament. India has marched its way into the semi-finals and is set to face New Zealand in the semi-finals at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on 15^th November.

Given the dominant performance in the tournament so far, Indian fans are expecting the coveted World Cup trophy to come back home after 12 years. But given India’s shaky track record against the New Zealand in major matches fans will be praying that ghosts of the 2019 World Cup semi-finals won’t come back to haunt them again.

Once India ends their World campaign, hopefully on the 19^th of November with a trophy in their hands, soon after they will be facing Australia in a home 5-match T20Is series. The T-20 series against Australia will commence from 23^rd November in Vishakhapatnam.

Multiple options for captaining the Men in Blue

A young Indian team is likely to play in the T20 series and the current Indian team playing the World Cup is on the road since the Asia Cup 2023. Rohit, Shubhman, Bumrah and Virat will not be part of the series and as Hardik Pandya is already suffering from an ankle injury, the question lies in who will lead the team in the absence of these players.

According to reports, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Suryakumar Yadav are among the top contenders to lead the team in the absence of prominent players. As Suryakumar Yadav is the No.1 T20 player in the World and the most celebrated batter in the current team and Ruturaj Gaikwad has just led the Indian team to an Asian Games Gold, these were the top choices to lead the team in the absence of other big players.

Although Sanju Samson should be the captain of India considering his seniority and experience, selectors will keep him in the running for the role in June. He will be the wicket-keeper batsman in the squad, with Jitesh Sharma as his backup. If fit, Tilak Verma is a certainty in the lineup and will bat at No. 3 or 4, with Samson at No. 5.