After the 2023 Border-Gavaskar Trophy saw India register a series win by a 2-1 margin against Australia and now the visitors will be keen on settling the score in the upcoming ODI series. Both India and Australia will face each other in a three-match ODI series that is scheduled to begin on March 17.

As India prepares to take on the mighty Aussies, the hosts will be missing skipper Rohit Sharma in the first ODI of the series as he will be absent due to family commitments. Deputy Hardik Pandya will be leading the Indian team for the first ODI in his absence.

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Following the announcement that Hardik will be leading the Indian team in the first ODI, legendary batter Sunil Gavaskar came forward to heap praise on Pandya and his captaincy. He also opined that Pandya brings a sense of comfort to the squad, and the way he treats players is among the very best.

The 73-year-old lavished the positives of the all-rounder’s captaincy abilities, as he said, “What you see with Hardik Pandya as a captain is a sense of comfort with the rest of the team. Maybe, it’s the way he handles the players, puts his arm around the players… He just seems to give the players a sense of comfort. That’s so important to give a player a sense of comfort so that he can go out and play his natural game. I think he encourages them, which is a wonderful sign.”

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The little master further added, “He has been an impressive captain. I have been very impressed with his captaincy at the T20 level for the Gujarat Titans and for India when he is captaining the T20 side. I do believe that if he wins the first game in Mumbai, then you can almost stamp him as the India captain once the World Cup is over in 2023.”