KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant could be India’s potential T20I vice-captaincy candidates, feels Sunil Gavaskar

Virat Kohli, earlier this month, had announced his decision to step down as India’s T20I captain after the upcoming T20 World Cup, which begins on October 17.  Kohli had cited workload management as a major reason for the call, following which he also announced  that he’ll quit as Royal Challengers Bangalore captain after IPL 2021.

With Rohit Sharma in all likelihood to take over from Kohli in T20Is, Sunil Gavaskar marked KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant as the two likely candidates to be his deputy.

“You always want a street-smart captain who can read situations and act immediately. So yes, Rahul and Pant are the two guys I would look at as vice-captains," Gavaskar said in a Star Sports show ‘Cricket Connected’.

KL Rahul has excelled as a batsman ever since taking over the leadership role at Punjab Kings in 2018, while Rishabh Pant, who was named as Delhi Capitals’ captain for the 2021 season following an injury to Shreyas Iyer, has put the side on verge of making to the play-offs for third straight season.

“He (Pant) has been really impressive in the way he has led a star-studded Delhi team and the bowling changes that he has been making in the T20 format, using Nortje and Rabada in such a clever manner that actually shows a street-smart captain,” Gavaskar said. 

"I think (of) Rohit Sharma (as captain) for the next two World Cups. You could say they (World Cups) are back-to-back, one starting in a month and another exactly a year from now. So clearly, yes, you don't want to change too many captains at this particular stage. Rohit Sharma would definitely be my choice for the captaincy of the Indian team for both these T20 World Cups."