I couldn’t laugh during my stint with KKR: Gautam Gambhir

Gautam Gambhir, the former Indian cricketer, apart from his glorious journey in international cricket, successfully plied his trade in the prestigious Indian Premier League (IPL). After three seasons for Delhi Daredevils (DD), Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) shelled out a whopping INR 11.04 crores for the Delhi-born cricketer in 2011 and he didn’t disappoint the franchise and by any stretch of the imagination.

The experienced campaigner won them a couple of titles in 2012 and 2014, and also performed exceptionally with the bat in hand. But despite the stupendous journey, the 37-year-old mentioned that he couldn’t enjoy his stint with the Knights and he put forth the reasons behind the same.

During quite a few matches, he had been seen sitting in the dugout with a glum face even when KKR used to be in a decent position. Team owner Shah Rukh Khan, also a Bollywood actor, mentioned that Gambhir hardly used to laugh. The retired cricketer also talked about the reasons for not wearing a smile.

I was expecting from myself and my owners

“I was under pressure from the monetary point of view from 2011 itself because of the price tag. Obviously, they would’ve given me 11.04 crores with trust and expectations. When I joined KKR, I was under pressure and that stayed with me for the next seven years. We won in 2012 and the pressure was the same even in the next five seasons,” Gambhir was quoted as saying in Sports Tak.

“I was expecting from myself and my owners also pinned hopes on me. And I believe that due to the pressure, I couldn’t enjoy my stint with KKR and it was fine. I couldn’t laugh, as said by Shah Rukh, because I was under pressure and I had to justify myself and the owners. If I don’t fulfill the expectations, then I don’t deserve to be in the side,” he added.

As far as numbers are concerned, Gambhir was amongst the best in the business in the IPL. In 154 matches, he notched 4218 runs at an average of 31.01 with 36 centuries. The southpaw is currently the fourth highest run-scorer in IPL cricket with his 460 boundaries being the top-most in the mega event.

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