"Will you blame Gautam Gambhir?" - Sunil Gavaskar's stunning take on Andre Russell's heroics vs SRH

Former Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar made interesting remarks involving Gautam Gambhir and Andre Russell. Sunil Gavaskar dismissed the idea that Andre Russell’s outstanding performance was influenced by Gautam Gambhir joining KKR as their mentor.

The Kolkata Knight Riders commenced their IPL 2024 journey with a hard-fought victory against Sunrisers Hyderabad at Eden Gardens on March 23. Andre Russell showcased an exceptional all-round performance in KKR’s win and earned the ‘Player of the Match’ award.

The West Indies all-rounder notched up a swift half-century and secured two pivotal wickets. Russell’s performance gains significance, particularly following his poor season with KKR last year. The team management showcased unwavering trust by retaining him.

Andre Russell Batted Well – Sunil Gavaskar

Speaking to Star Sports, Sunil Gavaskar cautioned against forming hasty judgments based on a single match. He emphasized the need to avoid attributing Andre Russell‘s performance solely to Gautam Gambhir‘s presence at KKR.

“Let’s not go ahead of ourselves. He batted well, and it’s got nothing to do with anyone coming into there (KKR). If he doesn’t do well in the next few innings, will you blame Gautam Gambhir? Let’s take it a little bit easy,” Gavaskar told Star Sports.

“When you saw someone like Bhuveneshwar Kumar, who was practising his yorkers so well on the practise pitches, bowled leg-deliveries (in the match) which was everything in the arc for Andre Russell… When somebody like Russell is hitting the ball into the stands, nobody can stop him,” he said further.

Gautam Gambhir returned to the franchise as their mentor for the IPL 2024 season, marking his first involvement with the team since 2017. Gambhir, who led KKR to victory in 2012 and 2014, is the only captain in the Kolkata franchise’s history to win the IPL title.

Andre Russell came to the crease when the Knight Riders were struggling at 119/6 in 13.5 overs. The all-rounder dominated against the bowler from the start. He achieved his half-century with a six off Bhuvneshwar Kumar, taking just 20 balls to reach the milestone.

The 35-year-old remained unbeaten with 64 runs off 25 balls, including 3 boundaries and 7 sixes, as the home team scored 208 runs in 20 overs. He added an 81-run stand with Rinku Singh, who scored 23 runs off 15 deliveries, for the seventh wicket in the recent match.

Russell also made a significant contribution with the ball, claiming two wickets for 25 runs in his two overs. The right-arm pacer dismissed Abhishek Sharma and Abdul Samad. Young pacer Harshit Rana successfully defended 13 runs off the final over of the game.

The KKR team is set to play against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in their second match at the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Friday, March 29. Meanwhile, the Faf du Plessis-led RCB side faced a defeat against the Chennai Super Kings at Chepauk on March 22.

The Shreyas Iyer-led side occupies third place in the 10-team points table, trailing behind the Chennai Super Kings and Punjab Kings. They have accumulated 2 points with a net run rate (NRR) of +0.200.

Also read: “Harshit Rana’s body language..”- Andre Russell drops a massive remark on youngster’s attitude after BCCI’s punishment