Hardik Pandya has all the qualities to be a leader, states Kumar Sangakkara

Hardik Pandya made waves in the IPL 2022 as he led Gujarat Titans to a title run in the IPL debut. Pandya was backed after the tournament to be India’s full-time captain in the T20Is and he is the front-runner for the position currently. The all-rounder has been named as a skipper for the upcoming series against Sri Lanka. Kumar Sangakkara has also shared his views praising the Gujrat Titans captain.

"There is no doubt that his leadership is excellent and we all saw that in IPL. Now he has to melt that with on-field captaincy at the national level. He has all qualities to be a leader although you don’t necessarily need to be a captain to be a leader," Sangakkara told news agency PTI.

Prior to the series, Hardik has led India in six matches and found success on the tours of Ireland, West Indies, and New Zealand. The all-rounder will face the challenge of managing the young guns and extracting their best for the team. Sangakkara explained Hardik will have to seize the crucial moments in a match as a skipper. 

"Now captaincy on the field can be a different thing. To read moments, win moments and strategize, you have to be sharp. The hardest part is to inspire, talk and manage his players in a group together to play with a vision and the rest will come with experience, captaining in close games," he explained.