Going forward in T20 cricket, average and runs will have no impact: Gautam Gambhir

The strike rate has been a major point of discussion in the 17th edition of the Indian Premier League. Star batter Virat Kohli initially received a lot of criticism for his strike rate but the former RCB captain changed his strategy and played an aggressive brand of cricket, which stopped the talk. However, the conversations made their return as former cricketer Gautam Gambhir claimed that runs and averages don’t matter in T20 cricket anymore and it’s the strike rate that is important.

Under Gambhir's leadership, the Kolkata Knight Riders played an aggressive brand of cricket, which helped the franchise finish as the league leader in IPL 2024. Following this, the 42-year-old noted that going forward, selections will be made based on strike rate and for bowlers, the focus will be on the things they bring to the table in pressure situations. 

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The former cricketer also remarked that in different conditions, like that in West Indies and Bangladesh, teams don’t need raw pace but players who can execute well. He mentioned that fans in India often hype a youngster for bowling fast but he believes that there should be a balanced approach for the betterment of Indian cricket.

“In India, we start creating so much hype with these young cricketers coming through. Everyone gets excited if someone is bowling 150 clicks. The point is you need to look at the conditions as well. Going forward in T20 cricket, the average and runs will have no impact. It is the strike rate, when you select a batter, and when you have to select a bowler, it is the kind of tough overs he can bowl. That will be the discussion that will happen in next two or three years,” Gambhir said on R Ashwin's YouTube channel.

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“We keep talking about the amount of runs and averages, and all that stuff, someone bowling 150s. Sometimes when you go in conditions like West Indies or Bangladesh, you don't need someone bowling 150. You need someone who bowls cutters as well. That is where the vision lies with the selectors. Sometimes you pick raw talent. But creating so much hype after two or three games, we need to have a balanced approach,” he added. 

The Delhi-born cricketer also emphasised that India’s T20 squad should be picked from the IPL but for ODIs, Vijay Hazare should be given priority and for Test cricket, selection should happen on the basis of Ranji Cricket.