The new Lucknow IPL franchise owned by Sanjiv Goenka had made their second official appointment as they announced two-time IPL trophy-winning captain Gautam Gambhir as the mentor of their team for the upcoming IPL 2022.
Gambhir, who led Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to the IPL trophy in 2012 and 2014, is expected to have an advisory role in the franchise and will be the “guiding hand” when it comes to firming up the team’s plans and improving player performance.
Franchise owner Sanjiv Goenka called Gambhir’s appointment as a move towards building an inclusive team environment “geared towards a culture of performance.”
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“Gautam will primarily have a motivational role to play. He will also help to create a blueprint for the franchise in the long term. We wanted to have people with a proven track record of success. Gautam has also successfully groomed a generation of youngsters for KKR and that went in his favor,” Goenka told Times of India.
Earlier the franchise had roped in former Zimbabwe player and England coach Andy Flower as their head coach. Gambhir is expected to work with Flower in the backroom.
“Gautam has an image of being a totally non-partisan leader with a focus on results. Look at what he did for KKR. Fundamentally we would like the dressing room to be geared towards a culture of performance,” Goenka said.
Talking about his previous stint in IPL, as the owner of the Rising Pune Supergiant team, Goenka said: “That was just a short two-year thing. We were impatient and left many things unfinished. This (Lucknow) is oriented towards the long term as not many franchises have come in and succeeded in the first year itself.”
Goenka was tight-lipped on the team’s plans — which is rumored to include going aggressively for KL Rahul as first-choice captain at the auction — revealing only that “we have zeroed in on a couple of names”.
“I have to follow the system. I have no role in the rules and regulations. That said, the biggest inspiration for me is Mumbai Indians. What they have achieved, and how they have gone about it, is a template for not only other IPL teams but sports franchises worldwide,” the owner said.
In an official statement, Gambhir said: “The fire to win a contest still burns bright inside me. The desire to leave a winner’s legacy still kicks me 24x7. I will not be contesting for a dressing room but for the spirit and soul of Uttar Pradesh.”
(Times Of India Inputs)
