IPL 2018: Gautam Gambhir has special tip for Dinesh Karthik ahead of the second qualifier

The second finalist of the eleventh edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) will be decided in a few hours time at the Eden Gardens. The Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) will lock horns in the second qualifier of the tournament and will try their best to come out on top. However, the former KKR player has come out with a special advice for the new captain Dinesh Karthik ahead of the do-or-die game for the Men in Purple and Gold.

Dinesh Karthik replaced the left-hander at the helm this year after the latter was not retained by the franchise at the mega-auction earlier this year. The decision was surprising as the team had won the coveted title twice, in 2012 and 2014, under his leadership and is still loved by the people of Kolkata for his contribution. But Karthik has done well in his maiden stint for KKR and is only a couple of games away from winning the tournament.

What is the tip?

Gautam Gambhir recalled the suggestion given to him by Sourav Ganguly when he stepped into his shoes back in 2011 and felt that even Karthik has to do the same in order to win the hearts of the fans. He went on to say that he was nervous leading the side for the first time.

“One of the first tricks to win at Eden Gardens is to get the crowd on your side. This was a pearl passed on to me (Gambhir) by a stalwart (Ganguly) when I took over Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). I was nervous as I was stepping into the ‘Dada’ shoes of Sourav Ganguly. The tip helped. I am not one of those theatrical types who can play to the crowd,” he wrote in his column for Hindustan Times.

“Hence I relied on performance, transparency and a bit of bhadralok (gentleman) approach. I can say with some confidence that when I left KKR, Eden was almost 90 percent purple,” he further added. As it turned out, he was one of the favourite cricketers of Kolkata when he last played for the franchise which proves that the special tip worked wonders for him.

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