Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) mentor Gautam Gambhir was quite delighted after purchasing Mitchell Starc for a record high 24.25Cr at the IPL auction. He defended the purchase of Australia quick Mitchell Starc by saying him as a X-factor in the IPL. Gambhir further added that Starc will be the leader of KKR bowling attack alongside indian youngsters like Harshit Rana and Vaibhav Arora.
The Australian pacers had a feat at the IPL Auction 2024. Earlier in the Auction, Australian Captain Pat Cummins broke the record to become the Most Expensive Player to be bought at a price of 20.75Cr by Sunrisers Hyderabad. Within a few minutes, his countrymen Mitchell Starc broke his record to become the Most Expensive Player to be bought at a price of 24.25Cr by Kolkata Knight Riders.
After the purchase of Starc, Gambhir stated that he is quite happy with the team combinations of KKR. He feels that they have enough options whereto play different combinations looking at the pitch conditions and venue dynamics. He also stated that it is really important for a team to have a strong bowling line-up compared to a very strong batting line-up,
Mitchell Starc is an X factor – Gautam Gambhir
In an interview on JioCinema, KKR mentor Gautam Gambhir said that he is pleased with the strong bowling line-up Kolkata have put together following the IPL 2024 auction. KKR’s bowling lineup is headed by Australian pacer Mitchell Starc along with young Indian pacers Harshit Rana and Vaibhav Arora.
“He (Starc) is an X-factor, there is no doubt about that. Someone who can bowl with the new ball, bowl in the death overs and more importantly, someone who can lead the attack. He is going to be of massive help to our two domestic bowlers because both of them are very talented and you need someone to help them out in the middle and Starc covers those bases,” said Gautam Gambhir.
Gambhir further added
“It is not only about his bowling but also about leading the attack and helping all guys around him. So, somebody will have to pay for it,”