Gautam Gambhir has joined the newly-formed IPL franchise -Lucknow Super Giants, as a mentor.
Former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir, who has been roped in as the mentor of the new IPL franchise Lucknow Super Giants, will be among the main brains behind the team’s strategy at the upcoming IPL 2022 mega auction.
Gambhir already has two IPL titles to his credit as a captain of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and as a team strategist & mentor of the Lucknow Super Giants, he revealed that in the IPL 2022 mega auction, the franchise aims to pick such players who could assist build a team for the future.
“I think it’s a great opportunity to create a legacy and create something which has never been created before. We don’t want to copy anyone; we need to have our own template, we need to have our own legacy as well. And what better than when you have no baggage,” said Gambhir in a discussion with journalist Boria Majumdar on his show ‘Backstage with Boria’.
“Sanjiv (Goenka) sir, when he had Pune (franchise), they missed winning the title by one run. So it’s going to be a great challenge if we can finish that unfinished business as well but then we can’t promise that it’s going to happen in one year. It’s a long-term prospect as well. It’s not going to be something like we are going to think only for this year,” he added.
Notably, Lucknow have opted to go with KL Rahul (Rs 17 crore), Marcus Stoinis (Rs 9.2 crore), and Ravi Bishnoi (Rs 4 crore) for the IPL 2022. While Rahul will don the captaincy hat, Andy Flower has been named the coach of the team.
Meanwhile, Gambhir also revealed the reason behind buying Bishnoi.
“Ravi Bishnoi, from that point of view, made a lot of sense as well. He is young, he is a wicket-taking option and he is got to be your sure-shot guy playing in the playing XI; he can bowl at different stages of the game. More importantly, he is an uncapped player as well. So from every sense, it made a lot of logic for us to actually get him on board so that we can develop him going forward,” Gambhir said.
“If he keeps his head on his shoulder, he will get better from here on. Going forward, if you see most of the leg spinners, this is probably the youngest of the lot and probably the most talented of the lot as well. So from that point of view, we have a present and a long-term strategy as well. So hopefully it will be a good journey going forward,” he added.
Meanwhile, the IPL 2022 mega auction will take place on February 12 and 13. The two-day mega affair will see 10 teams bidding for some of the finest talents in world cricket. The players’ list incorporates 270 capped, 903 uncapped, and 41 Associate players.
