IPL 2020: Eoin Morgan can replace Dinesh Karthik as KKR skipper if team does not start well, says Sunil Gavaskar

Legendary cricketer Sunil Gavaskar is of the opinion that England captain Eoin Morgan is a viable option to become the skipper of Kolkata Knight Riders, if present skipper Dinesh Karthik fails to live up to expectations.

Speaking on a YouTube interview with Sports Tak, he said, “Even this can happen that if in the first four-five games if KKR do not start well, then Eoin Morgan can replace Dinesh Karthik as the captain of the side because we always have had that complex.”

Having played for KKR for the most number of seasons, Morgan has also played for Sunrisers Hyderabad and Kings XI Punjab. However, he became one of the biggest buys of the 2020 auction as the Kolkata team bought him back last year.

File image of Sunil Gavaskar. Reuters

The Indian wicketkeeper-batsman, meanwhile, became captain of the Kolkata Knight Riders ahead of the 2018 Indian Premier League season after the former captain Gautam Gambhir left the franchise.

Gavaskar evaluated the performance that KKR can put up this season, and he also spoke on Morgan’s contribution to the team. “Kolkata Knight Riders is such a team that has a very attractive and aggressive batting order. But the addition of Eoin Morgan to the middle-order has added more stability and experience to it. Thus, he can prove to be very dangerous,” he said.

The England batsman was in brilliant form in the recent limited-overs series against Pakistan and Australia recently.

The legendary batsman also spoke about Pat Cummins, who had proven to be the costliest overseas cricketer after he was bought by KKR for Rs 15.5 crore. This broke the previous record to make the Australian bowler the highest bid for foreign players in the history of the league.

Gavaskar said that Cummins will be under pressure to prove himself worthy of his price tag.

Click here to read factboxes of all IPL teams

Click here to check out the full IPL 2020 Schedule

Click here to read all IPL team previews

Click here to read IPL FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)