New Delhi: Australian pacer Mitchell Starc heaped praise on India head coach Gautam Gambhir, highlighting how he is a strategic thinker who always keeps his team requirements first. Starc worked with Gambhir at Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. Gambhir was the mentor of the franchise and guided them to a memorable title triumph last season.
Lauding Gambhir’s tactical acumen, Starc called the present India head coach a fantastic thinker while recalling his experience of playing under his guidance for KKR. Starc picked up 17 wickets in 14 matches to play a key role in helping KKR end their decade-long title drought in the IPL by lifting the title earlier this year.
“Speaking from my experience at Kolkata, he is a fantastic thinker of the game. He’s always thinking about the opponent and how to get them out as a bowling attack or how to score runs as a batting attack,” Starc said on Star Sports.
“It’s not just individual players it’s always about the team focus and how to get on top of little things that he might see in techniques or in a field placement or anything like that,” he added.
Gambhir was part of KKR’s think tank during the IPL 2024 auction last year and was behind the franchise’s bold move to splurge a record sum on Starc. KKR bought the Australian pacer for a whopping Rs 24.5 crore at the auction, making him the most expensive player in the tournament’s history. Starc didn’t have the best of starts for the franchise in the league stage, however, he bounced back for the team in the knockout stages.
Starc vs Gambhir in Border Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25
Freinds from the IPL will turn foes in international cricket as Starc and Gambhir will be up against each other when India lock horns with Australia in the much-awaited Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25 later this year. India have won back-to-back Test series in Australia and will be hoping to clinch their third Test series victory in a row this time around.
Gambhir will wear his thinking cap as a coach and will hope to ensure that India continue their stellar run against the Aussies Down Under. India are currently on top of the World Test Championship (WTC) points table and the Australia series will be a crucial one for them to book a spot in their third straight WTC final.
Australian pacer Mitchell Starc heaped praise on India head coach Gautam Gambhir and lauded him for always putting the team’s interest first. Starc was part of the KKR squad that won the IPL 2024 title under mentor Gautam Gambhir. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
