IPL 2017, Match 32, KKR v DD: CT Player of the Match - Gautam Gambhir

Robin saved the day against the Rising Pune Supergiant, but it was the Batman Gambhir who defeated Gautam-city! Pardon my pun. Skipper Gautam Gambhir was all class. He entertained a packed Eden Gardens crowd with some exquisite strokeplay.

Everything that left his bat was pure gold, to say the least. Gautam Gambhir dropped anchor when the Kolkata Knight Riders lost their pinch-hitter, Sunil Narine, early. His 52-ball 71 made sure the Knight Riders cantered to a 7-wicket win. A captain’s knock earns Gautam Gambhir CricTracker’s Player of the Match award.

Cometh the hour, cometh the man

There have been many an instance when Gautam Gambhir has stuck to the crease to pull his side out of troubled waters. The finest example of his responsibility as a batsman came in the 2011 World Cup final. The Wankhede saw MS Dhoni blast a six over mid-wicket to crown his team world champions. Next morning, newspapers across India printed headlines which read ‘Cometh the hour, cometh the man’. However, the man pictured below that headline was actually Gautam Gambhir. When the chips were down on the biggest night of Indian cricket, Gambhir not only steadied the ship for his side but also set up an emphatic victory over Sri Lanka to clinch the world cup.

One cannot deny that Gautam Gambhir is one of India’s most experienced players, who is still far from the sunset of his career. With over 10,000 international runs Gambhir remains a dangerous batsman at the top of the order. Despite being axed from the national side, Gambhir has proved his mettle with consistent performances in the IPL over the years. The KKR skipper once again finds the Orange Cap sitting firmly on his head.

An exhibition of boundaries

Chasing 161 on a batsman’s paradise at the Eden Gardens, KKR opened with Gambhir and Narine. The latter perished cheaply, but Gambhir remained steadfast.

The boundaries came thick and fast. Gambhir’s shots exhibited the importance pure timing has in cricket. The very next over after the field restrictions were lifted, Gambhir took on leggie Amit Mishra. On two occasions in the same over, he danced down the track and lofted the ball over the infield. Pulls, drives, cuts, glances – Gambhir unleashed every shot in the book.

Double landmark for GG

Shortly after Uthappa’s unfortunate dismissal, Gautam Gambhir got to a personal milestone. Anderson offered a delivery short and wide outside off. The double G, as Danny Morrison would have said, got to his fifty with a cut off the back foot. More importantly, Gambhir got to 6000 T20 runs.

Unlike Uthappa – who looked in spectacular form in his 33-ball 59 – Gambhir’s wasn’t an onslaught. He brought up his 50 off 39 balls, which would be considered slightly on the slower side. However, Gambhir played risk-free cricket. He went on to cream 11 boundaries in his 71.

Not often do you see a batsman score as many as 71 runs but not hit a single 6. He did something similar in KKR’s first game of the tournament when Chris Lynn decimated the Gujarat Lions bowling attack. Ask Gautam Gambhir how he does it!

Dominant KKR led by dominant captain

The Kolkata Knight Riders’ reputation as deadly chasers grows. The side is yet to lose a chase at the Eden Gardens since 2012 – a phenomenal record under any circumstances. With a convincing win over DD, KKR are firmly on top with 1 win away from sailing into the playoffs.

The Knight Riders have clearly dominated this edition of the IPL. What’s helped them is that they’ve been led by a dominant captain who now tops the charts of the leading run-scorers, and that’s the one and only Gautam Gambhir.