Sangakkara said change is inevitable but Hardik has the potential to succeed

Former Sri Lankan captain Kumar Sangakkara believes that it is always difficult to deal with the transition phase in the international team but India have enough talent and a good leader in Hardik Pandya to deal with this phase in T20 cricket. India will play six limited overs matches against Sri Lanka in the new year. Meanwhile, Pandya has been made the captain in place of Rohit Sharma for the T20 Internationals starting on January 3. Lokesh Rahul and Virat Kohli are also missing from the team, indicating that Indian cricket will go through a transition from this series.

“A period of change is inevitable,” Sangakkara told PTI during an interaction organized by ‘Star Sports’, the official broadcaster of Sri Lanka’s tour of India. You always have to be ready for this. But for it to be effective, it is necessary that players keep coming from domestic cricket. “He said,” Every team goes through a difficult phase of change and we have seen the same in Australia. Seen this for a long time with New Zealand a while back, even in England. All of them went through a phase of change and facing difficult times was the common factor in all these teams.

Sri Lanka legend Sangakkara believes it is important to give more opportunities to young faces. He said, “You have to trust the players you pick, you have to trust them for a long time. They have to be given the necessary experience and opportunities so that they can adjust to international cricket and understand what it is all about. ”The transition period for Sri Lanka after the retirement of veterans like Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene has been tough. Sangakkara said, “There are a lot of young players coming up in India so it is about picking the best out of them and giving them more chances.”

He talked about Pandya captaining Gujarat Titans while guiding Rajasthan Royals in the IPL. Sangakkara said, “There is no doubt that his leadership is excellent and we have all seen that in the IPL. Now he has to show his captaincy at the national level. He has all the qualities to be a good leader. However, it is not necessary to become a captain to be a leader.

He said, “I think Hardik has all the qualities to be a good captain. The most difficult thing is to motivate, talk and manage your players to play together in a group and the rest will come with the experience of captaining in close matches. ”As far as the new Indian T20 team is concerned, Sangakkara Ruturaj Gaikwad and Sanju keep an eye on Samson’s game.

He said, “I love watching Ruturaj Gaikwad bat and he is a player who can bat properly with technique and still has a lot of influence in T20 cricket. Sanju Samson of course also has a lot of influence. Puts and I want to see Sanju in this Indian team for a long time. “Sangakkara said,” Sri Lanka will have a tough challenge but they have the ability to match India in T20s.

He said about the Asian champion team, “They have captain Dasun Shanaka, Charith Aslanka, Pathum Nissanka, Kusal Mendis. They have a top order that can take the team to big scores. “The former captain said,” Their middle and lower order with captain Shanaka, Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Wanindu Hasaranga is very strong. Sri Lanka have depth in their batting order. We have the spin duo of Mahesh Teekshana and Hasaranga along with the pace of Lahiru Kumara and Dilshan Madhushanka.

Rishabh Pant is not part of the limited-overs squad against Sri Lanka and Sangakkara believes his wicketkeeping is more important than batting. He said, “I think Rishabh Pant can improve a lot in his wicketkeeping. Many people focus only on their batting and it is the combination of the two that gives confidence.

Sangakkara said, “With his bat, I have no doubt that he has all the shots, ability and talent but one has to understand how you progress an innings in T20 cricket, to know which bowler to attack.” Asked if T20 is fast becoming a format where older players are becoming less relevant, Sangakkara said, “I never thought it was going to be about age. is about. I just look at the skill and I think it is a game of the most skilful players.