Thaindian News

Mumbai, Sep 9 (IANS) Kolkata Knight Riders team owner Shah Rukh said Friday that injured captain Gautam Gambhir will not be forced to play in the Champions League Twenty20 qualifying rounds starting in Hyderabad later this month.

“Unfortunately Gautam Gambhir is injured. We will not force him to play in the tournament. The decision whether he’s fit enough to play in the championship has to be completely his (to take) and to his fitness staff’s,” said Shah Rukh.

Gambhir was ruled out of the ODI series against India after he fell and suffered a concussion while attempting to take a catch in the fourth and final Test against England.

The southpaw has been advised rest and is set to miss the Champions League.

Shah Rukh, who was Friday was unveiled as the face of the Champions League, said that injuries and sports go hand in hand.

“If you play sports you can get injured. No pain, no gain. The players know best about their injuries though at times they may take a decision (to play) which may go wrong. Sometimes players don’t know how serious is their injury and they want to play,” said Shah Rukh.

The star actor also brushed aside suggestions that the Indian Premier League (IPL) was the reason behind injuries to several Indian players.

“It’s a knee-jerk reaction and happens only when we lose in cricket and not in other sports. Today we drew 2-2 with Pakistan in hockey (Asian Champions Trophy) which no one talks about,” said Shah Rukh.

“All of us, franchise owners, were happy with the runs scored by the likes of Sachin Tendulkar and Mahendra Singh Dhoni in the World Cup. We are all proud when the Indian team does well. You can stop IPL for one year and see what happens but I don’t think it will make any difference. We need to be a lot more patient,” he said.