Kings XI Punjab face Kolkata Knight Riders in a crucial encounter in Sharjah on Monday. KKR are placed fourth in the points table and KXIP are placed at fifth with 10 points. A win for Punjab will help them enter into the top four. KKR, on the other hand, would like to win this one and get to 14 points and distance themselves from the rest of the pack. Meanwhile, former KKR skipper Gautam Gambhir spoke about a certain luxury that KL Rahul is enjoying at the moment as the skipper of Kings XI Punjab.
Talking to ESPN Cricinfo, Gambhir said that the presence of three pacers Mohammed Shami, Chris Jordan and Arshdeep Singh in the KXIP line-up is a great luxury to have for skipper KL Rahul.
“The best thing is that KL Rahul now has three fast bowlers to whom he can give the ball to in the death overs – Mohammed Shami, Chris Jordan and Arshdeep Singh,” Gambhir said on ESPNCricinfo.
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Gambhir further said that Rahul had to search for bowlers in the first seven games, however, the addition of a third pacer in the line-up has allowed him to be more flexible and have more options.
“If you look at the first seven games for KXIP, KL Rahul had to search whom to give the overs to in the death overs. Now he has three options. When any captain has three options in the death – it is a luxury” added Gambhir.
Gautam Gambhir Praises Arshdeep Singh
The former KKR skipper further lauded young Arshdeep for his performances so far in the tournament. He has dismissed some big names in the game in the matches that he has played so far. He has picked up nine wickets from six games including the likes of Rohit Sharma and Andre Russell.
“The credit for this I would like to give to Arshdeep Singh. Because Mohammed Shami and Chris Jordan are both international bowlers. But Arshdeep is a young, domestic cricketer and he has bowled well in the death overs. It has helped in changing the structure and compensation of the entire team since Arshdeep has been in the playing XI,” concluded Gambhir.
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