Down with jaundice, Gambhir set to miss early part of IPL

Defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders might miss the services of their captain Gautam Gambhir, as the senior opener is down with jaundice.

Gambhir, who was in contention to replace an injured Shikhar Dhawan in the fourth Test against Australia, underwent a few blood tests and jaundice was detected ruling him out of the match starting on Friday.

As of now, he might require rest for a period of three weeks in order to get back in action.

There is a possibility that South African all-rounder Jacques Kallis or New Zealand's wicketkeeper-batsman Brendon McCullum might lead KKR in Gambhir's absence.

McCullum has already had an experience of leading KKR during the disastrous second edition in South Africa where they finished at the bottom of the heap.

But Kallis, if fit and available, will be the senior-most player and someone who is respected in the KKR ranks.

So, Kallis seems to be the favourite to lead the side if Gambhir misses the first few matches of the IPL.

Gambhir last played a competitive match against Punjab in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Twenty20 Tournament where he made an unbeaten 68 in 54 balls to leave a successful chase.

The possibility of KKR having an overseas skipper is due to the fact that there aren't too many high quality Indian players who can replace Gambhir as captain.