IPL Auction: Starc will be of massive help to our domestic bowlers, says KKR mentor Gambhir

New Delhi, Dec 20 (IANS) Gautam Gambhir, the mentor of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), believes acquiring Australia’s fast-bowling spearhead Mitchell Starc for a whopping INR 24.75 crore will also help the side massively in terms of passing on crucial learnings to the domestic fast-bowlers.

On Tuesday, Starc became the IPL's most expensive player ever, taking over the tag from his Australia captain Pat Cummins in less than two hours at the auction, as Kolkata spent more than 75% of their purse at the auction.

Starc has played only two seasons of the IPL in 2014 and 2015 for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and was slated to play for KKR in 2018, but pulled out due to a leg injury. “He 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. 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,” said Gambhir to JioCinema.

At the auction, KKR also picked Afghanistan spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman, England pacer Gus Atkinson and India left-arm fast-bowler Chetan Sakariya. “We have a lot of depth in our bowling line-up. We always wanted to have a stronger bowling attack and now we have the options with Mujeeb (Ur Rahman), Gus (Atkinson), Sunil (Narine), Varun (Chakravarthy), and Mitchell Starc along with two Indian seamers and Chetan Sakariya.”

“Now, we have enough options where we can play different combinations looking at the venue as well. For me, it has always been about having a strong bowling line up compared to a very strong batting line up,” he added.

In October, KKR announced that Gambhir is back as mentor in the team, after being in the same role with Lucknow Super Giants for IPL 2022 and 2023 seasons. Gambhir was the captain when KKR won IPL titles in 2012 and 2014, when he was there from 2011 to 2017.

“For me, KKR is not a team, it is an emotion. The reason is the amount of love that I have received from the people of Kolkata for seven years that I led them and hopefully, I led them with a lot of honesty.”

“Hopefully, we can recreate the same memories that we did in 2012 and 2014. There is no guarantee that we will go out and win but there is one guarantee for sure, that we will fight till the last drop of our blood," he concluded.