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Gautam Gambhir might have drawn curtains to his glittering careers a few years ago, but his cricketing brain remains as active as it was ever in the past. Gambhir keeps putting forth his opinion on various aspects of the game.
The Delhi-lad, who led Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to IPL trophy in 2012 and 2014, believes that the KKR has got a skilful spinner, who will make batsmen dance to his tunes in the UAE.
Gambhir was referring to none other than Sunil Narine, a mysterious off-spinner and an explosive batsman from Trinidad.
Coincidentally, Narine made his IPL debut when Gambhir was at the helm of the Knight Riders. The Trinidadian was a vital cog of KKR’s title-winning campaigns, but his adeptness with the ball has plummeted after being banned in 2015 for chucking.
Narine’s re-modelled action harmed his efficacy in the shortest format of the game. He was no longer as lethal as he used to be before the ban.
However, the 32-year-old came up with yet another tweak which has been lately working in his favour.
Narine’s pace will make him a dangerous proposition
“For me, the most important thing is that when Sunil Narine is hiding the ball during his run-up, it will increase the difficulties for the batsmen. It will be difficult to find which ball will go away and which ball will come in. Because the later you see the ball in the hand, the more difficult it is for the batsmen,” Gambhir said on the ‘Cricket Connected’ show for Star Sports.
The cricketer-turned-politician further remarked that if Narine gets a bit of grip from the pitches, his unorthodox action along with little pace might make him a lethal option for KKR.
“If Sunil Narine gets a little grip from the UAE wickets, he will be very effective. And I totally agree with Deep that the pace at which Sunil Narine is bowling, Rashid Khan is so successful because of his pace and Sunil Narine has been successful when he has bowled quicker, it is a new thing we have seen and this might make him very successful in the IPL.” Gambhir added.
