We are very much in race for the play-offs: Gambhir

Despite having won just four out of 11 games, Kolkata Knight Riders captain Gautam Gambhir is confident that his team will be able to beat Mumbai Indians tomorrow's IPL encounter and stay in contention for the play-offs.
"We are very much in the race. I haven't heard anyone say that we're out. A lot of people are saying that we need to win five out of five. But if you see in the last three years teams have qualified in the top four with eight wins," Gambhir put up a brave face as his team prepares to take on the mighty Mumbai Indians.

"We're not thinking about the play-offs right now but we want to win as many games as we can from here," said Gambhir ahead of the crucial game.
Gambhir did not agree with the suggestion that the must-win situation the team finds itself in could be a blessing in disguise in making his players more determined.
"Whether it's the start or the end of a tournament, we always go out there to win. The desperation is always there. Till now, we have approached every game with the same hunger and desperation and it's not that only because we are in a position like this that we are desperate to win.

"We have to look at the remaining games like any other game rather than thinking it's a must-win game," said Gambhir who the leading scorer for the team with 320 runs in aggregate.

Asked whether the team will go in with both their leading spinners Sunil Narine and Sachitra Senanayake on a wicket which helps pacers, Gambhir said they were quality bowlers who did not need support from a helpful track.
"Not sure (whether to play two spinners). Not seen the wicket so far. From what we have seen in games here, there's a little bit of bounce and some swing late in the evening. I believe we have quality spinners.

"They don't require (helpful) surfaces because when you have too many things up your sleeve they don't require surfaces. They both have a lot of variations and all that stuff. Last time, I remember we played three spinners and we were successful in defending 127. When you have a quality attack just go for that," he said.