Former India cricketer Gautam Gambhir is completely against creating hype for young players after two or three good games in their careers. The Kolkata Knight Riders mentor feels that hyping the players might backfire as they need to have a balanced approach.
Gautam Gambhir has always made the headlines for his ‘to the point’ statements. The former Indian cricketer has been against the individual-obsessed things in Indian cricket and has always urged the fans to support the team rather than showing their love for the single players.
Not only the fans but Gautam Gambhir has even targeted commentators and broadcasters for showing things about just a few players all the time on TV. The Kolkata Knight Riders mentor hasn’t shied away from speaking things in public as he believes in prioritizing teams over individuals.
Gautam Gambhir, who is also one of the frontrunners to take up the India coach job, pointed out how young players get hyped when they bowl at a speed of around 150 kph, seemingly taking a dig at Mayank Yadav. But the former India cricketer doesn’t believe in this as he wants players to be given hype only after they do things in difficult situations. Speaking to Ravichandran Ashwin on his YouTube channel, he explained:
“In India, we start creating so much of hype with these young cricketers coming through. Everyone gets excited if someone is bowling 150 clicks. The point is you need to look at the conditions as well. Going forward in T20 cricket, the average and runs will have no impact.
“It is the strike rate, when you select a batter, and when you have to select a bowler, it is the kind of tough overs he can bowl. That will be the discussion that will happen in the next two or three years.”
Gautam Gambhir further weighed on his argument, saying that selectors need to change their vision as they need to pick players based on the need of an hour. He added:
“We keep talking about the amount of runs and averages, and all that stuff, someone bowling 150s. Sometimes when you go in conditions like West Indies or Bangladesh, you don’t need someone bowling 150. You need someone who bowls cutters as well. That is where the vision lies with the selectors. Sometimes you pick raw talent. But creating so much hype after two or three games, we need to have a balanced approach.”
Gautam Gambhir further said that experts and commentators need to balance when they talk about young players. He believes that when youngsters get hyped their focus shifts from hard work. He added:
“The graph goes [up and down] in India, and it is not good for a young player. That is where the experts and commentators need to be balanced when it comes to these young players. It is easy for them to get deviate from the hard work and the good things they are doing. Because suddenly when you start talking about a young player doing well, it can backfire for them.”
Gambhir is part of Kolkata Knight Riders’ setup in the ongoing IPL 2024. Under his mentorship, KKR has reached the playoffs of the tournament. They will be next seen in action when they will take on Sunrisers Hyderabad in Qualifier 1 on Tuesday (May 20th).
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