"Will Do Miracles": Suresh Raina Adds New Name In Shubman Gill-Shreyas Iyer's ODI Captaincy Race

Former batter Suresh Raina recently gave a new direction to the debate surrounding India's new ODI captain. As the selectors are now looking towards the 2027 ODI World Cup, there are high chances that skipper Rohit Sharma might retire from the 50-over format as well. As per the reports, the race of India's ODI captaincy is between Test captain Shubman Gill and batter Shreyas Iyer. Gill was also appointed as the vice captain of India's Asia Cup squad while Iyer was snubbed from the team.

Speaking about the role, Raina stated that Gill holds an upper hand over Iyer but went on to name all-rounder Hardik Pandya as the perfect choice for India's ODI captain.

"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.

Hardik is also a part of India's Asia Cup squad, which will play its first match on September 10 against UAE. India will be led by batter Suryakumar Yadav.

Raina, who was an integral part of Chennai Super Kings squad till 2021, was also asked to name his ideal Playing XI for the five-time champions.

"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.

Topics mentioned in this article

India Cricket Team Chennai Super Kings Suresh Raina Hardik Pandya Shubman Gill Shreyas Iyer Cricket