Two-time IPL winning skipper Gautam Gambhir slammed Virat Kohli for his leadership saying that the team India skipper is not delivering for 8 long years now. Gambhir has added that he holds nothing against Virat Kohli but it was time for the 32-year-old to raise his hands and take the responsibility of team's title-less run in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The two time World Cup winner added, that Kohli's Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Mumbai Indians (MI) counterparts, MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma have been long-standing captains of their teams because of their deliverance. Gambhir asserted that MI management would have removed Rohit Sharma from captaincy for a failure of 8 long years.
"Eight years is a long, long time. Look at what happened to R Ashwin. Two years of captaincy [for the Kings XI Punjab], he couldn't deliver and he was removed. We talk about MS Dhoni, we talk about Rohit Sharma, we talk about Virat Kohli...not at all. Dhoni has won three [IPL] titles, Rohit Sharma has won four titles, and that's the reason they've captained for such a long time because they've delivered. I'm sure if Rohit Sharma wouldn't have delivered for eight years, he would have been removed as well. There should not be different yardsticks for different people. "The problem and the accountability starts from the top, not from the management nor the support staff, but from the leader. You're the leader, you're the captain. When you get the credit, you should take the criticism as well," Gambhir has told ESPNcricinfo.
In his playing days, Gambhir was one of the most sought after Indian players when Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) bought him in 2011 and handed him the reigns of the side. Gambhir not only brought out the best from his players but also helped the franchise clinch success in the Indian Premier League . RCB have thrice featured in finals of IPL (2009, 2011 and 2016) but failed to lay their hands on the coveted trophy. After RCB lost to Delhi Capitals but still qualified for the play-offs on the basis of a better Net Run Rate (NRR) than Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). Batting first, RCB could only manage 131 runs in 20 overs with only AB de Villiers able to get going. RCB bowlers made it difficult for the SRH batsmen but ultimately failed to defend the target. Virat could only manage a score of 6 on Friday.
