3 IPL teams where Gautam Gambhir would fit in

A notable name in the released list announced by the IPL franchises on November 15th was Gautam Gambhir. Having led the KKR side to IPL victory two times, the Delhi opener moved to Delhi Daredevils for the IPL 2018 season. However, Gambhir was in a bad form with his bat which led him to step down from the captaincy midway through the season. Thereafter, Gambhir did not get a game with the Delhi side. With Shikar Dhawan back in the Delhi squad and Prithvi Shaw slowly becoming a talented opener, Gambhir was deemed surplus to requirement and was therefore released to the auctions for the upcoming season.

However, Gambhir is still a force to reckon with as he has shown in the Vijay Hazare Trophy this year. Hence, there are chances that he could still find an IPL franchise next year. Here are three teams where the former KKR captain would fit in according to the team requirements.

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#3 Sunrisers Hyderabad

Sunrisers Hyderabad has been part of the biggest trade move this year. They have given up a financially unhappy Shikar Dhawan to DD in exchange of Vijay Shankar, Nadeem, and Abhishek Sharma. David Warner would be coming back from a one-year ban and there will be concerns whether he could start off from where he left. Hence, there is a need for an experienced player at the top and Gautam Gambhir would be a perfect fit-in.

His captaincy experience will also be a valuable asset to the franchise. Gambhir along with Williamson and Warner at the top will forge a formidable top-3 for the Hyderabad based franchise. With Manish Pandey and Yusuf Pathan to follow, their middle-order issues could also be solved to an extent.

Unlike DD, Gambhir will not have the pressure of representing and captaining his home franchise which could give him the license to play his natural game.

#2 Kolkata Knight Riders

Gambhir could still hope for a return to KKR

Gautam Gambhir's absence is still felt at KKR as they have failed to replace their former captain with a suitable player. While DK has been decent with his captaincy, KKR has failed to get a batsman at the top who could dictate the proceedings. They have gone with Narine at the top which could be a liability in the future.

Shubman Gill is still inexperienced and Chris Lynn is fragile. Uthappa and DK are inconsistent at times and hence Gambhir could still have a vacancy in the KKR squad. Although he might not become the skipper again, the familiar conditions could help Gambhir get back to form.

#1 Royal Challengers Bangalore

It would be a treat to watch Gambhir and Kohli play for the same IPL side

After letting go of Gayle, last season, RCB has created yet another vacancy in the opening position by relieveing McCullum and De Kock this year. Manan Vohra is also gone and Parthiv Patel's form at the top is questionable. Although Kohli can move up the order, RCB will still look for 2 openers at the auction.

RCB also has a dearth of quality Indian batsman in the squad which could create an opening for the experienced Gautam Gambhir. Gambhir has performed well previously at Chinnaswamy and with Kohli and ABD coming below him, it would give him all the freedom to play his game. With Gary Kirsten and Nehra a part of the think tank, Gambhir will be in familiar surroundings which could help his game.

Also, the sight of having Gambhir and Kohli play together after a long time would bring in more fans for the RCB squad.