Former Indian Cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar believes Steve Smith would be the ideal replacement for Kane Williamson in the Gujarat Titans, who is likely to be ruled out of the IPL 2023 due to the knee injury he sustained during the opening game against Chennai Super Kings.
Cricketer-turned-commentator Sanjay Manjrekar speaking on star sports said bringing Steve Smith in place of Kane Williamson would be a great call by the Gujarat Titans to replace the injured Williamson.
“I think that would be a brilliant call, and Steve Smith is the kind of player they want, somebody who can play all kinds of gears,” Sanjay Manjrekar said.
Gujarat Titans suffered a huge blow in the 1st match against CSK when Williamson was forced to walk off the field in just 13 overs when he tried to intercept a ball from Ruturaj Gaikwad. Kane Williamson was seen in terrible pain and immediately received treatment from the physio but could not continue the game, and later on, he was taken to the hospital for scans.
With scan results out, according to the reports Kane Williamson might not play again in IPL 2023. It will be interesting to see whether Gujarat Titans seek a replacement for the New Zealand batter. Gujarat Titans will take on Delhi Capitals in the second match in the Arun Jaitley Stadium, on April 4. They will look to continue their winning run against Delhi Capitals.
Hardik Pandya Needs A Bit Of Help In Captaincy – Sanjay Manjrekar
Sanjay Manjrekar asserted that Steve Smith could help Hardik Pandya with his captaincy for Gujarat Titans, as Steve Smith impressed everyone with captaincy skills during the ODI series against India. Earlier during the 1st match Hardik Pandya said he would get suggestions from support staff to use the newly implemented rules.
“Plus with the new rules which he finds very cool, I’d love to see Smith’s captaincy, we saw that and we were raving about it in the India-Australia series. And Hardik Pandya needs a bit of help, he confessed, ‘I have no idea what my tactics are, so I’m going to leave it to the others.’ So, that could be a great call,” Sanjay Manjrekar added.
Steve Smith, who is currently part of Star Sports, speaking on his possibility to return to playing in IPL 2023, the 33-year-old said.
“I don’t know if I’ll qualify, I didn’t even put myself in the auction. So I don’t think there’s even a possibility. So, maybe next year, we will see where we go,” Steve Smith Said on Star Sports.
Steve Smith has previously been with the Delhi Capitals, Rajasthan Royals, Rising Pune Supergiant, and Pune Warriors India.