With David Warner out, Hyderabadis mull over who should captain Team Hyderabad

The recent ball-tampering controversy involving Steve Smith, David Warner and Cameron Bancroft, has not only shaken the cricketing world but has also come as a huge blow for Team Hyderabad franchise. With the T20 league to kick off on April 8, Warner, who led Team Hyderabad to title in 2016, has stepped down from captaincy on Wednesday. Hyderabad Times spoke to cricketers and sports enthusiasts in the city to find out who they think should replace Warner? There is no dearth of options though. Kiwi skipper Kane Williamson, Bangladeshi skipper Shakib Al Haasan, Shikhar Dhawan or up and coming batsman Manish Pandey seem to be the front runners for the post. Shikhar Dhawan and Kane Williamson seem to the favourites...

Shikhar is in the form of his life, he is the right man to lead team Hyderabad: MIllind CV, Indian first class cricketerDavid Warner’s decision to step down as the captain of Team Hyderabad will have adverse repercussions on the team. Being part of the franchise for two years, I am averse with his leadership qualities and style of operation. Now, the team will again have to regroup under a new captain and that’s not always easy. He was an aggressive captain and had great understanding, not just with the players, but also the team management. I think, the management should handover the reign of the team in the able hands of Shikhar Dhawan. He is in superb form and has been dominating the shorter version of the game for a while. Personally, I think he will make a great captain for Team Hyderabad.

Kane is one of the best captains in the world: T Suman, cricketerKane Williamson should be the next captain of Team Hyderabad as he’s one of the best captains in the world today. Also because he is acquainted with captaincy and is leading the New Zealand team successfully. I’ve also known him personally when I played for the Hyderabad franchise. He understands the team and management well. He’s a young,
dynamic and aggressive player who understands the composition of the team really well. What Warner did is sad! It’s not like nobody else has done it before, but again it’s a sad incident. Cheating is always cheating; cricket should be played in the right spirit.

I think Kane is a better captain than Virat Kohli: Jayesh Ranjan, Principal Secretary, Information TechnologyThe Black Caps’ skipper, Kane Williamson, is in great form. In fact, he recently scored a ton against England in a Test. If you ask me, I rate him over Virat Kohli and he should captain Team Hyderabad. Though Kane’s captaincy is not aggressive, I don’t see the point of being an aggressive
captain. Warner’s aggression led him nowhere with the Australian team now openly rebelling against him. Moreover, Warner’s actions won’t impact Team Hyderabad as it happened before the tournament. Most importantly, the mentors of the team — Muttiah Muralitharan , Krishnamachari Srikkanth , Laxman and Waqar Younus are all very calm in their approach and won’t allow anyone to cross the line. Team Hyderabad has also done decently well in Fare Play Awards even when Warner was there, so this whole thing would have little impact on the players.

Shikhar Dhawan is the ideal candidate: Aamer Javeed, a cricket buffTo captain an IPL Team is a responsible job, and also very tricky because a franchise consists of a pool of players from different backgrounds with varied experiences — there are top-notch international players as well as base-level local ones who are yet to make a mark in the sport. The job of leading an IPL Team requires a man of experience, who has played for India. And that’s why my bet is on Shikhar Dhawan. He has been a part of Team Hyderabad for long and understands most of the players who have been retained or have come back to the team. And after playing for Team India under experienced captains such as MS Dhoni and ViraT Kohli, I think he is well-equipped to lead the team.

Kane has more captaincy experience than Shikhar: Ambika Pradhan, a cricket enthusiast Kane will do better than Shikhar as he is one of the senior most players in the squad. Kane Williamson would be a great captain for Team Hyderabad. His captaincy can lead the way, as he’s more of a thinker and keeps his calm while taking important decisions. So he may do better than Shikhar Dhawan as he’s also the current captain of the New Zealand team.

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