Former India selector Sandeep Patil has said the release of Gautam Gambhir and Yuvraj Singh by their IPL franchise has not surprised him.
Two of the biggest release ahead the upcoming auction for the twelfth edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) were Gautam Gambhir and Yuvraj Singh. Both the players completely failed to do well in the last edition which eventually made their respective franchises release them.
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Gambhir’s return to his first Indian IPL team Delhi Daredevils did not pan out on expected notes. He played with the franchise for the first three seasons before being signed up by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in 2011.
The Knight Riders paid a whopping amount of $2.4 million – to secure Gambhir’s services in 2011. Gambhir went on to justify the franchise’s decision with his consistent performances. Under Gambhir’s captaincy, the Knight Riders qualified for the IPL playoffs and also made it to the Champions League Twenty20 (now scrapped), for the first time in 2011.
Gambhir eventually led the side to their first title in 2012 by beating former champions Chennai Super Kings. Two years later, he led the team to their second title, making the Knight Riders one of the most successful teams in the league.
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Gautam Gambhir led KKR to two titles (Credits: BCCI)
His performance with the bat was equally impressive. He was the batting mainstay of the side since joining the side.
In the seven seasons, he scored 3,035 runs with the help of 27 half-centuries for the Riders.
And expectations were high that he would do wonders with Daredevils too. However, things did not go down well under Gambhir. In six games, the Daredevils won just one match. Gambhir also failed to lead his side from the front, scoring just 85 runs in those six games. And he did not play any game for the rest of the season.
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On the other hand, Yuvraj was also roped back in by his former franchise Kings XI last season. But just like Gambhir, he too flopped with the bat.
But despite their form, many felt that the decision to leave the duo was a big call, given their reputation. However, former Indian chief selector Sandeep Patil has reckoned he was not surprised to see the two veterans being left out.
“Yuvraj and Gautam have been my favorite players and remain my favourite, but as a franchise owner, if I have to take a call on them being part of my team, I would also have dropped them,” he wrote in his column for The Quint.
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“It is not a happy moment or a good feeling when you drop a player. Nobody in life wants to lose; no board, franchisee, player, captain wants to fail. Players get picked for a particular slot and a lot of thought goes behind picking him,” he added.
He further spoke on why Daredevils made the right call in releasing Gambhir.
“Gambhir led KKR respectfully and won two IPL titles for them. But age is something which not only catches up with players, but also slows down the player, affecting their performance. I don’t have to name the players, but it has happened to cricketers in the past and will continue to happen in the future as well,” Patil wrote.
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The former India star went on to state that it is about time Gambhir and Yuvraj take a big call on their career.
“The sun is now about to set on these two greats, not only of the Indian cricket, but also World cricket. Yuvraj and Gambhir have to, however, take a call regarding their future. Both of them have given immense pleasure to the country by performing at the highest level, but it is a survival of the fittest,” Patil wrote.