IPL 2022: Gautam Gambhir reveals why Lucknow picked Marcus Stoinis in the team

The IPL 2022 will be a 10-team affair with the addition of two new teams Lucknow and Ahmedabad. The mega auction for the upcoming tournament is scheduled to be held on February 12 and 13. Lucknow franchise has appointed former Team India opener Gautam Gambhir as their mentor and ahead of the auction, they have already signed three players.

Indian limited-overs vice-captain KL Rahul has been named captain while emerging leggie Ravi Bishnoi, and, star Australia all-rounder Marcus Stoinis are the other two players. Meanwhile, mentor Gambhir has revealed the exact reason behind signing Stoinis. He reckons that the all-rounder can play the finisher’s role to perfection.

“After Ben Stokes, who is likely to stay away from IPL this season, Stoinis is the complete package. He can bat, bowl, and is one of the best fielders. I think his addition is good news for the team,” said Gautam Gambhir while speaking on Star Sports. “We have seen him perform in the ICC T20 World Cup. He can win matches single-handedly,” he added.

Furthermore, the two-time World Cup winner also added that the franchise has decided to rope in Marcus Stoinis purely from a finisher’s point of view since they were unaware of English all-rounder Ben Stokes’ availability for next month’s auction. Gambhir also mentioned that apart from batting well in the middle-order, Stoinis has the ability to finish games as well.

Marcus Stoinis will be playing for his 4th IPL team

This will be Marcus Stoinis’ fourth IPL team. He had represented Delhi (Daredevils & Capitals) before making an impact for Punjab Kings, and, Royal Challengers Bangalore.  The T20 World Cup winner was roped in by the Delhi Capitals during the 2020 season and in the last two editions, he has amassed 441 runs at a strike rate of 142.71 and also registered 15 scalps.

Marcus Stoinis has been offered a sum of INR 9.2 crore, while Ravi Bishnoi and KL Rahul have been paid INR 4 & 17 crores respectively. With three players already on board, it would be interesting to see how the Lucknow-based franchise plan out their strategy on the auction table in what is expected to be a high-intensity bidding war next month as they look forward to welcoming some key players to their team.