Shah Rukh Khan, the owner of the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) squad and a Bollywood superstar, stated that he never believed Gautam Gambhir had ever left them before rejoining the team as a mentor prior to the last Indian Premier League (IPL) season.
After a ten-year break, the franchise won their third championship thanks in large part to Gambhir's return. The team captained by Shreyas Iyer won the championship after defeating Sunrisers Hyderabad in the final.
"I never thought Gautam Gambhir left us. There has always been a lovely relationship with Gautam over the years. There are a few players with whom friendships remain strong, and Gautam Gambhir is one of them. For him, it was a big homecoming," Shah Rukh said on JioHotstar's 'Power Play'.
However, Gambhir's tenure at KKR was only for the 2024 campaign because, following Rahul Dravid's departure in July of last year, he was appointed head coach of India.
According to former KKR batsman Robin Uthappa, the squad's performance suffered as a result of Gambhir's exit from the team in 2017.
"When Gautam was no longer with KKR, it felt like—where are the pieces going to settle? Since his exit, there was a slight loss of direction. I think, at one point, panic set in. From the outside, you could sense that things weren't as smooth as they seemed. You always expect KKR to perform at a high level, and when the performances didn't match the team's aura, it became evident that something had to change.
"As soon as I heard that Gautam Gambhir was coming back, I remember tweeting that the best thing to happen to KKR since Gautam Gambhir leaving, was Gautam Gambhir coming back!"
Former India batter Ajay Jadeja added, "The relationship between KKR and Sourav Ganguly, whether with the fans or within the team, wasn't yielding great results. So, in 2011, a major overhaul was planned. I think the biggest shift that year was that, before 2011, KKR was seen as Sourav Ganguly's team. But from that point, it became Shah Rukh Khan's team—with Gautam Gambhir leading them."
Experienced Indian batsman Ajinkya Rahane has been named captain and all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer has been named vice captain of KKR ahead of the IPL 2025 season.
Prior to this, Rahane captained the now-defunct Rising Pune Supergiant and the Rajasthan Royals, which advanced to the IPL 2018 playoffs.
It was almost a given that Rahane would captain KKR once they signed him, but rumors were circulating about Iyer, the team's most expensive acquisition at the super auction (Rs 23.75 crore), and Rinku Singh as possible captains.
Rahane was named Player of the Tournament after leading Mumbai to victory in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy during the most recent domestic cricket season. He also set the record for most runs scored in the competition with 469 runs in nine games, including five half-centuries.
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