New Delhi: In a move that surprised many Gautam Gambhir stepped down Wednesday as captain of Delhi Daredevils (DD), stating that he was not good for the job. Gauti, as he is popularly known also said that he was forgoing his Rs 2.8 crore annual salary as he is the one to blame for the disastrous results till now. This is probably the first time that an IPL skipper has decided not to take his salary because of non-performance.
The DD management announced Shreyas Iyer as the new skipper of the team at press conference attended by coach Ricky Ponting and team CEO Hemant Dua.
The 36-year-old Gambhir, however, will continue to be a part of the team for the remaining eight games. The left-handed batsman, who led KKR to two IPL titles said he was not able to handle the pressures associated with captaincy.
“The bell started ringing after the last game (against KXIP at Kotla) and it was time to take the call. My own performance has not been up to the mark. Maybe I was too desperate to turn things around,” Gambhir, who has scores of 55, 15, 8, 3 and 4 in this edition of the IPL, said.
“I was sitting alone and thinking, I couldn’t handle the pressure. I was not good enough and that is all,” he added.
The southpaw insisted that he was not pressurised to quit and it was rather his own decision. “It is solely my decision and there was no pressure from the franchise. As I said, my performance was not up to the mark and I just could not handle the pressure. That could be one reason (for stepping down),” asserted Gambhir. “I was 28 when I joined KKR and today I am 36. May be I could handle pressure better then,” he added.
Newly-appointed Iyer however, said that he is excited about the challenge which captaincy will bring to his plate.
“I love responsibility, love facing challenges. It is a great opportunity to prove myself and take the team to the highest level possible,” the 23-year-old Iyer said and added that he was informed about the development only Wednesday afternoon.
Ponting remained optimistic about the team’s chances to make the play-offs. “We can still turn it around. Six out of our eight games are at home. It is just that we have not been able to put it together. The gap between our best cricket and worst cricket has been a bit too much,” pointed out the former Australian captain.
Towards the end of the conference, Gambhir was asked about his future as a player. “I have not thought about it yet,” Gambhir said. “I don’t know whether I will continue playing or not, it’s too early for me to decide on that. I have to think where my game goes and I go as an individual,” added the former India opener.
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