'He gave me confidence and assurance': Sunil Narine extremely thankful to KKR mentor Gautam Gambhir

Sunil Narine has praised Gautam Gambhir for giving him the confidence to return as KKR's opener after getting his maiden IPL century against RR on Tuesday, April 16. Narine reached 100 in just 49 balls, continuing his season-long batting renaissance. Narine was elevated up the order after Gambhir returned as KKR's mentor, and following that consistency in Narine's batting has returned. Narine has returned the favour to Gambhir by striking the first IPL hundred.

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Sunil Narine extremely thankful to Gautam Gambhir

Narine has 276 runs and is currently third in the Orange Cap standings, trailing only leader Virat Kohli and RR's Riyan Parag. Narine informed the broadcasters that if he had been told he was in the running for the Orange Cap, he would have laughed it off. The opener would then credit Gambhir's return as the primary cause for his turnaround as a batter, claiming the KKR coach gave him confidence that he would perform well.

"I think it would have been a joke because I hadn’t opened the batting for a few years. I had in the past but didn’t believe. With GG coming back, he gave me the confidence and assurance that I will do good. I had to give the team a good start. The job is to give a good start, whatever the situation is. We have an understanding of the pitch. It won’t be easy. We have to make use of the powerplay. Try to pick wickets and restrict them to a low total as possible," said Narine.

Narine announced retirement from the international career earlier in the year. However, in the mid-innings break of KKR vs RR, Narine hinted that he could rethink his decision. Here's what he said when asked whether he could return to play for West Indies in the forthcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2024.

"I think it is what it is. But we have to see what the future holds," said Narine.