Gautam Gambhir's intense look whenever his team plays is wll-documented. Rarely can Gautam Gambhir be seen smiling, when his side plays. Be it for his earlier side Lucknow Super Giants or his current side Kolka Knight Riders, the celebrated IPL 'mentor' is always focussed and serious. He recently indulged on the same topic during a discussion with anchor Cyrus Broacha
"Whatever we see, you seem a very jovial and easy going guy off the field," Gambhir was told by anchor Cyrus Broacha.
"In this country, the most difficult thing to beat is perception. Someone who does not even know me has this perception that he is intense. And why should I not have a game-face? Because people don't come to watch me smile. People come to watch KKR win," Gambhir replied.
"But you have a lovely smile," Broacha said.
"Lovely. Thank you," Gambhir said.
"So, do it sometimes," Broacha said.
"Even my wife (Natasha Jain) has never said this. Thank you very much," Gambhir replied.
Recently, KKR assistant coach Abhishek Nayar spok about the impact of Ganbhir on KR.
"A lot that goes without saying. See there is no substitute for experience. There is no substitute for a captain who has won two IPL championships for this franchise. So whether you are a mentor or you are on that field I think having GG (Gambhir) in the dugout is a big difference and a big boost for everyone in the dugout because you know to go back and speak about him, his own experiences and what he did as a captain," Nayar said in a press conference.
KKR star batter Rinku SIngh also praised the role of Gautam Gambhir in transforming Sunil Narine, the player. Narine has excelled as KKR opener.
"You can see the way Narine is batting this time. In every match, he's making runs, opening the batting and that was his (Gambhir's) idea only," Rinku said.