IPL 2024 | 'Thought we would be at the top': Gautam Gambhir humorously attributes KKR's 'Fair Play' award standing to his dugout presence

Gautam Gambhir (Pic: PTI)

Former Indian batter and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) mentor Gautam Gambhir joked that the reason why his franchise is near the bottom of the 'Fair Play' award is because he is present in the dugout.

Speaking at spinner Ravichandran Ashwin's YouTube channel on Monday, Gambhir, known for being an aggressive, win-at-any-cost character while playing and mentoring his team, hilariously remarked that he thought KKR would have been at the top of the IPL 2024 table in Fair Play because of the hug he shared with star Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) Virat Kohli, with who he has had some verbal spats on the field throughout his career.

"Honestly, I will tell you, this year, I thought that we would be at the top of the Fair Play Award table because of what has happened in Chinnaswamy (hug between him and Virat). There is no even competition, irrespective of where we are on the points table, but we've got to be at the top of the fair play award but still, we are at the bottom," he said.

"Someone sent me a message a couple of days back: KKR is where KKR is at the moment. I said, yeah. In the top, no. In fair play, at number 10 (currently number nine). Is there a trophy? I said, no. And I still do not understand. We played pretty fair. What wrong have we done in the last five games? I do not think so we have done anything wrong. And still we are number 10. Probably it is just because I am sitting in that dugout," Gambhir added.

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Coming to IPL 2024, Gambhir-mentored KKR will take on Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at Ahmedabad's Narendra Modi Stadium on Tuesday.

The clash between KKR and Sunrisers Hyderabad SRH at Narendra Modi Stadium here promises to be a run-fest, with the match taking place between two trailblazers of the season, who made a habit of hitting fours and sixes, putting up huge totals for fun.

KKR finished at the top with nine wins, three losses and two no results, with a total of 20 points. In their last game, they had beat Mumbai Indians by 18 runs on May 11. Their final two league-stage games against Gujarat Titans (GT) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) were abandoned due to rain. SRH is at the second spot, with eight wins, five losses and one no result, giving them 16 points. In their last league stage game on Sunday, they beat Punjab Kings by four wickets.

(With agency inputs)