(Image source from: Twitter.com/GautamGambhir)

In a heartfelt decision, former cricketer Gautam Gambhir has officially departed from the Lucknow Super Giants IPL franchise. He has chosen to rejoin the Kolkata Knight Riders, a team that he previously led to victory on two occasions. The CEO of the Knight Riders, Venky Mysore, made the announcement and revealed that Gambhir would now serve as a mentor for the team. This news was met with great enthusiasm by the co-owner of the Knight Riders, Shah Rukh Khan, who referred to Gambhir's return as the 'homecoming of their captain'. Gambhir himself was overwhelmed with emotion as he finalized his switch from the Lucknow Super Giants to the Knight Riders.

For the past two years, Gambhir had been fulfilling the role of mentor for the Lucknow Super Giants, guiding them to the final in the IPL 2022 edition. Unfortunately, in the 2023 campaign, the team finished third in the league standings and missed out on the final for the second consecutive year. Gambhir bid farewell to the Super Giants through a touching post, expressing his gratitude and emotions towards the franchise.

LSG Brigade! pic.twitter.com/xfG3YBu6l4

— Gautam Gambhir (@GautamGambhir) November 22, 2023

He took his Twitter page to write"As I announce the end of my impeccable journey with Lucknow Super Giants, I am filled with love and immense gratitude towards all the players, coaches, support staff and every individual who has made this journey memorable. I would like to thank Dr. Sanjiv Goenka for his inspiring leadership while creating this remarkable franchise and for his tremendous support to all my endeavours. I'm sure that the team will do wonders in the future and will make every LSG fan proud. All the very best LSG brigade!".