Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) mentor Gautam Gambhir has received criticism frequently for “not smiling” and always having a “game face on,” and now once again the former India opener, who is well-known for his stern expression, has turned heads with his bold statement. Even after taking over as the role of mentor of the Indian Premier League teams, Gambhir, who was regarded as an aggressive player during his playing career, continues to think in the same way. In a conversation with Ravichandran Ashwin on his YouTube channel, the former World Cup winner said he is not a Bollywood actor thus his job is just to win the match and create a winning environment in the dressing room.
Gambhir said fans don’t come to the stadium to see him smile but rather to watch their team win.
“I don’t understand. You know sometimes when people talk about he doesn’t smile, he doesn’t laugh, he is always intense, he is always grumpy, he is walking on the edge, he always has the game face on. People don’t come to watch me smile. People come to watch me win. That’s the kind of profession we guys are in. I can’t help it,” Gambhir said on Ashwin’s YouTube channel.
In response to questions about his passionate demeanour, Gambhir said he is not in entertainment.
“I am not in entertainment. I am not a Bollywood actor and I am not in corporate. I am a cricketer. My job is I want to come back in a winning dressing room. And fortunately, unfortunately, a winning dressing room is a happy dressing room, I have all the right to fight for myself, to fight for my teammates and do everything possible within the spirit of the game to try and beat the opposition,” Gambhir added.
“Some people say he is too hard and he plays in a certain way. Yes, I do because it helps me perform to the best of my ability. That’s my characteristic because for me, it’s an obsession, and I’m actually obsessed with winning. What’s wrong with that? I’m actually obsessed with winning that that’s the problem I have,” said the KKR mentor.
Meanwhile, Gambhir’s KKR will play for a spot in the final when they take on Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in Qualifier 1 on Tuesday at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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