IPL 2021: "Morgan doesn't captain; his video-analyst does; Virat has been fabulous" - Gautam Gambhir rates all 4 captains before playoffs

Former Indian opener Gautam Gambhir has rated the captains of the four teams that have made it to the IPL 2021 playoffs,

The two-time IPL winner was blunt in his assessment of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain Eoin Morgan. He remarked that KKR is not being captained by Morgan on the field but by their 'video analyst' in the dugout. That was a sly dig at the Englishman for his penchant for using statistics to take on-field decisions while occasionally relying on code words too.

On the ESPNcricinfo show 'Runorder,' Gautam Gambhir said in this regard:

"Morgan's point of view, I'm not sure because he doesn't captain, so it's the video analyst that captains the side. He only just looks at the video analyst, so I don't know whether he's the captain on the field or (if the) captaincy is happening off the field."

Speaking about Kohli, Gautam Gambhir said while he has not always liked the 32-year-old's captaincy. But he has been 'fabulous' for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) this season. The former cricketer lauded Kohli for his decision to relinquish the captaincy in IPL 2022.

Gautam Gambhir said in this regard:

"Virat has been fabulous. Honestly, I have not enjoyed a lot of his captaincy, but this time around, he's been very, very good. Probably the reason is because he thinks this is his last time as captain in IPL, (so) he want to enjoy it more; he's just more relaxed. And he's got the bowlers this time..."

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KKR and RCB will clash in the IPL 2021 Eliminator on Monday. The winner will proceed to the second Qualifier, while the loser will be knocked out of the tournament.

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"Dhoni's no. 1 at the moment" - Gautam Gambhir

Gautam Gambhir rates MS Dhoni and Rishabh Pant, (PC: Twitter)

Gautam Gambhir analyzed the skipper of the top-two teams in the table. He remarked that while Delhi Capitals' Pant has the advantage of former IPL leaders in his team, Chennai Super Kings' Dhoni is best placed to handle pressure in the playoffs.

The 39-year-old said:

"Purely from the captaincy point of view who can handle the pressure best, probably has to be Dhoni. Rishabh has the advantage from a point of view that he's got a lot of experience in the playing XI. If Steve Smith plays, he's got him alongside. He has got Ravichandran Ashwin who has captained earlier as well... so for me Dhoni is No. 1 at the moment."

DC and CSK will fight it out in Qualifier 1 for a place in the IPL 2021 final. The losing team will have another bite of the cherry, though, as they will square up against the winner of the Eliminator in the Qualifier 2 on Wednesday.