Gautam Gambhir wants Delhi Capitals to include this player against KKR

According to former KKR captain Gautam Gambhir, the Delhi Capitals should reinstate Steve Smith into their starting lineup. Before Delhi's IPL 2021 Qualifier 2 match against KKR, Gambhir made this statement.

The 44-year-old believes the Nationals' starting lineup lacks a hitter of Smith's calibre who can anchor an inning on the Sharjah surface.

In Dubai's Qualifier 1, the team headed by Pant was defeated by the Chennai Super Kings. When they couldn't hold on to a 172-run lead, DC lost to CSK. Ruturaj Gaikwad and Robin Uthappa put up a 110-run stand to help CSK win. India's captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni's last-gasp flurry secured their place in the IPL 2021 championship game.

"For me Smith's record in the IPL doesn't matter now. I think he has to be in especially, on a surface like this because if you look at the top order, Shikhar plays one way, Prithvi Shaw might have the best game or the worst game, Shreyas plays one way, Hetmyer plays one way, Pant plays his own way.

"So Smith, probably, against a bowling lineup like this - against pace & against spin - he plays really well. So, I would definitely push him at no.3 and probably bat around him. Because, you need 140-150 on this wicket."

The Delhi Capitals, on the other hand, will fly from Dubai to Sharjah for their crucial Qualifier against the Kolkata Knight Riders. This tournament, Sharjah's pitch has been slow and sluggish. And Gautam Gambhir, the former captain of the Delhi Capitals, thinks Steve Smith might be useful in this situation. He believes that the team can take advantage of Smith's enormous experience and expertise against the formidable bowling lineup of the KKR.

When the two teams last played in the league phase, in Sharjah, the Australian scored the most runs for the Delhi Capitals. In the meanwhile, Prithvi Shaw has returned to the team following a brief injury setback. Also, Tom Curran was used as an additional bowler in the past two games by Rishabh Pant.

"The kind of batting lineup DC has, they can, without Steve Smith, make 160, or can get out on 80-90 as well. Because that's the kind of batting Delhi has. So against Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine, its going to be a difficult task, especially for the left-handers. So, I would definitely want someone like Smith to put some runs on the board."

There is no word yet on whether Rishabh Pant would start Steven Smith in the next crucial match against the Kolkata Knight Riders, according to Gambhir, who spoke to ESPNcricinfo. On October 13, the Sharjah Cricket Ground will host Qualifier 2 of the IPL 2021.

had hoped that the Delhi Capitals would sign Steven Smith to fill the No. 3 overall pick spot with them. In his opinion, the Australian batsmen can play around him like an anchor while the rest of the lineup plays off of them. As the 44-year-old woman put it: