The new franchise of the cash-rich Indian Premier League (IPL), Lucknow has appointed Gautam Gambhir as a mentor. The news was confirmed to Cricbuzz by the owner of the team, Sanjiv Goenka on Saturday (December 18).
Gambhir’s appointment is the second major announcement by them after buying the franchise for a huge price of INR 7090 crore in October. The former captain of Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Capitals, Gautam Gambhir, who has won the title twice, will join Andy Flower, who was earlier appointed as the head coach of the team as well.
Meanwhile, the people close to both Goenka and Gambhir reveal that they are good friends and their association on the game has been long-planned too. “Once the team was bought by Mr Goenka, the relationship became formal and professional,” said a common friend of theirs.
Along with Gautam Gambhir, his former Delhi and Knight Riders teammate Vijay Dahiya has also joined the team and he is likely to join as the assistant coach. Notably, Dahiya is the head coach of the Uttar Pradesh state team now.
Welcoming Gautam Gambhir, Goenka said: “I respect his cricketing mind and look forward to working with him,” the franchise owner said in a statement.
The former Indian cricketer also thanked Sanjeev Goenka for giving him the opportunity to serve the Lucknow franchise.
“Thanks a lot to Dr Goenka and the RPSG Group for presenting me this wonderful opportunity in their setup. The fire to win a contest still burns bright inside me, the desire to leave a winner’s legacy still kicks me 24×7. I will not be contesting for a dressing room but for the spirit and soul of Uttar Pradesh,” Gautam Gambhir, who has played IPL for 10 seasons where he represented both the Delhi and Kolkata teams in 154 games, concluded.
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