In Pics: KL Rahul over Hardik Pandya as leader and other key takeaways from India squad for South Africa T20Is

It is quite evident going by the selections that Hardik Pandya is not the future leader as predicted by many. KL Rahul led India in South Africa and while he did not do well as India lost the series, the LSG captain has taken the new franchise to the playoffs on back of effective leadership. Pandya has been a phenomenal leader as well for the Gujarat Titans but selectors have already sealed Rahul as future leader it seems. (Image source: Twitter)

One of the biggest takeaways from the squad announcement is the selection of these two new faces. SRH's Umran Malik and Punjab Kings' Arshdeep Singh have been top picks from IPL 2022 and they deserved an India call-up. While Umran has pace, Arshdeep has brains. These two can become a deadly combo for India in future. (Image source: Twitter)  

Shikhar Dhawan has over 400 runs in IPL 2022 but he is still not part of the India squad for South Africa T20s. He is only getting older and that could be the reason why selectors have moved past him. It does not matter now whether he performs or not, selectors have lost interest in him. (Image source: Twitter) 

A brilliant comeback from Dinesh Karthik this season has led to his India comeback at the age of 36. RCB batter played some superb knocks this season and the demand for India comeback was growing among the fans. Selectors had to pick Karthik after may experts also started praising him and asking for India comeback. (Image source: Twitter)

One of the biggest shocks was that Sunrisers Hyderabad batter Rahul Tripathi and Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson has been ignored while Venkatesh Iyer has been picked despite his poor form. Tripathi has been SRH's leading run-scorer while Samson has been part of India's T20 squad in the past but has never got a consistent run. Many fans believe these two should have been picked for the SA series ahead of Iyer. (Image source: Twitter)