Rahmanullah Gurbaz, the Afghanistan keeper-batter, revealed that his mother is still in hospital back home and recovering. But when the Kolkata Knight Riders, his IPL franchise asked for an update about his return, he came back for his KKR family.
Gurbaz, who was the preferred keeper-opener for KKR in IPL 2023, missed out on action in IPL 2024, had revealed that he was back home after taking a short break from the IPL as he was tending to his ailing mother. On May 1, Gurbaz flew back to Kabul to be with his ill mother. And then had updated that he’ll join the KKR camp soon.
Rahmanullah Gurbaz had joined the Gujarat Titans through the IPL auction in 2022 and did not play a single game for the team throughout the season. However, he was then traded to KKR ahead of the 2023 season, and he made his debut for the two-time winners.
Gurbaz went on to score 227 runs in seven matches for KKR, with a strike rate of 133.53, including two half-centuries. He was then signed by the franchise before the 2024 season, but has yet to play a game this year.
However, due to the presence of England’s Phil Salt at the top and Sunil Narine also opening, Gurbaz was not picked in the playing XI.
“Rahmanullah Gurbaz, we need you” – Afghanistan keeper-batter reveals KKR management’s call to him
The Afghanistan cricketer, who had to travel home to care for his mother in the middle of the competition, received a call from KKR management after Phil Salt left for national duty about ten days ago. Gurbaz admitted it was a difficult decision, but he heeded his mother’s advice and opted to travel to India to compete in the IPL playoffs.
The reason for Gurbaz coming back was that Phil Salt had flown back home for national duty as England were to play a T20I series against Pakistan starting May 22.
“My mom is still sick. I went there (back home in Afghanistan). I got a call from KKR once Phil Salt was leaving. They called me and messaged me, saying, ‘Gurbaz, we need you; what is your situation?’.
“I said I’ll come. My mother is still recovering in the hospital, I speak to her every day. But I knew my KKR was also my family. They needed me here. So, I came back from Afghanistan. It’s hard, it’s tough but I have to manage,” Gurbaz said in the post-match press conference.
He opened the batting with Sunil Narine and smashed 14-ball 23-run knock with two fours and as many sixes.
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