Harmanpreet Kaur stepped down as India captain across formats [Source: AFP]In a shocking development, Harmanpreet Kaur has stepped down as India’s captain across all three formats. On Monday, Harmanpreet, along with head coach Amol Muzumdar, met with BCCI officials for a review meeting, and perhaps a decision was taken to appoint a new skipper.Smriti Mandhana leads the race to be appointed captain for all three formats after Harmanpreet. However, other strong choices exist, and in this article, we look at candidates who could be alternatives to Mandhana.T20I captaincy candidate (Smriti Mandhana)Perhaps the easiest choice to make, Smriti Mandhana has done well as the RCB captain in the WPL, and she should be the first choice to replace Harmanpreet in this format.In her four-year stint with RCB, Mandhana has helped the team win two WPL titles, with the latest one coming in 2026. In fact, she was the first RCB captain to help the team break the trophy drought (as the men’s team won a year later).Moreover, captaincy in T20s brings out the best in Mandhana, and the southpaw understands the T20 template. Her WPL captaincy has been praised by many, and tactically, she fits the bill to replace Harmanpreet Kaur.ODI captaincy candidate (Richa Ghosh)Mandhana is most likely going to become the ODI skipper as well, but Richa Ghosh brings something different to the team as a leader.Also Read: List Of Titles Won By Harmanpreet Kaur As India CaptainTactically, she has matured playing under Harmanpreet and sharing the dressing room with Mandhana. Moreover, she has excellent game awareness as a wicketkeeper-batter. She also has the ability to handle high-stake situation in ODIs, and that makes up for a commanding captain.She reminds fans of the great MS Dhoni and how he had the ability to change the course of the game from behind the stumps. Richa can emulate the same feat, and Mandhana won’t be burdened by captaining both ODIs and T20Is.Test captaincy candidate (Deepti Sharma)A good Test captain is one who is aggressive and constantly rotates his field to make things happen on the field. Mandhana is outstanding in T20s, but India could be tempted to go in with an aggressive option in Deepti Sharma.Head coach Amol Muzumdar likened her to England all-rounder Ben Stokes, and generally, all-rounders make for a good red-ball captain. Just like Stokes, she has a relentless work ethic and can contribute with both bat and ball.Test matches are won by grinding hard and having a lot of patience. Deepti possesses the same quality, as her greatest quality is patience.Also Read: Harmanpreet Kaur Quits India Captaincy Across All Formats
