Former India player Gautam Gambhir has joined the Bhartiya Janta Party on Friday. There are just weeks to go before the 2019 Lok Sabha general elections and this is a big addition to BJP in its Delhi campaign.

The cricketer is likely to contest elections from one of the seven Delhi Lok Sabha seats. Gambhir, who recently called it quits from all forms of the game, has a reach of nearly nine million followers on social media and is very vocal about issues pertaining to national importance and society.

Recently, Gambhir received the fourth highest civilian honor, the Padma Shri award from the President of India. Hailing from Rajendra Nagar, Delhi, Gambhir played 147 ODIs and 58 Tests for India in a career spanning from 2003-2016.

His performances in the finals of the 2007 T20 World Cup final against Pakistan and the 2011 World Cup final against Sri Lanka helped India win both the titles. And Gambhir, in the process, went on to acquire something of a cult status among Indian fans.

(Inputs from Hindustan Times)