The aggressive cricket style played by the Kolkata Knight Riders under Gautam Gambhir direction enabled the team finish first in the league in the 2024 Indian Premier League. After saying this, the 42-year-old stated that going ahead, bowlers’ contributions under duress will be given more weight than strike rate while making selections.
One of the main topics of conversation surrounding the 17th Indian Premier League is the strike rate. After changing his tactics and adopting an aggressive style of play, star batsman Virat Kohli silenced many of the critics who had been critical of his strike rate. But the discussions resumed when former cricket player Gautam Gambhir asserted that strike rate is more significant in Twenty20 cricket than runs and averages.
The former cricket player added that teams need players who can execute well rather than raw pace in some situations, such as those in Bangladesh and the West Indies. While he acknowledged that Indian cricket fans frequently extol a young player for their quick bowling, he thinks that a more balanced approach is necessary to improve Indian cricket.
“In India, we begin to generate a lot of excitement when these young cricket players emerge. If someone bowls 150 clicks, everyone gets excited. The main idea is that you must consider the circumstances as well. In future T20 cricket matches, runs and average won’t matter. When choosing a hitter, it is all about strike rate; if you have to choose a bowler, it’s about the kind of difficult overs he can bowl.
In the next two or three years, it will be the topic of discussion, Gautam Gambhir stated on R Ashwin’s YouTube channel.
We frequently discuss things like averages, runs scored, and 150-plus bowling performances. In certain situations, such as in Bangladesh or the West Indies, you may get by without a 150-bowler. Someone who bowls cutters is also needed. That’s where the selectors’ vision is found. You select undeveloped talent occasionally. But we need to take a balanced approach—after two or three games, we shouldn’t be building so much hype,” he continued.
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The sportsman, who was born in Delhi, also emphasized that the Indian T20 team should be chosen from the IPL, but Vijay Hazare should be given precedence for ODIs, and Ranji Cricket should be taken into consideration while selecting the Test team.
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