Delhi Daredevils captain Shreyas Iyer said former skipper Gautam Gambhir decided to sit out the game against Kolkata Knight Riders, a couple of days after he relinquished captaincy of the team. Iyer, who took over from Gambhir, scored a blistering 93 off just 40 balls against KKR in Delhi to help his side to only its second win this IPL. The win helped Delhi snap its three-game losing streak, but they are still placed a lowly seventh, with four points out of a possible 14.

Iyer's fine start to his captaincy tenure was on the back of the solid foundation set by the opening pair of Prithvi Shaw and Colin Munro. Munro had been brought in for Gambhir for the game against KKR, and as captain Iyer confirmed during the press briefing after the game, it was Gambhir himself who decided to step back and let someone else take his place.

"I didn't make any call to be honest," Iyer said. "It wasn't my decision to drop him. He himself decided to sit out, which was really courageous decision with him being the captain in the previous matches. The respect for him has gone really high. It's really [good to] see when a captain, if he's not playing well, he backs out. Colin [Munro] came in and gave us the desired start."

Munro cracked a fine 18-ball 33 and was involved in giving DD an opening stand of 59 - the team's highest opening stand this IPL. It also allowed batsmen like Iyer and Glenn Maxwell to take a bit of time before teeing off.

Asked what the difference was between the two sides, Iyer mentioned the fact that the team was able to get off to a good start made a big difference for the side.

"It's just that we got a good start. Everyone was aware of what they had to do and contributed really well. It was a team effort. It wasn't an individual game. Everyone stepped up to the mark and started taking responsibility," he said.

Gambhir had, on Wednesday, stepped down as captain of the franchise after they had slumped to the bottom of the IPL 2018 table, winning only one out of six games. During a press conference, with coach Ricky Ponting, the franchise's CEO Hemant Dua and Iyer in attendance, Gambhir had made his decision public.

Now that Delhi's winless streak stretching back to April 14th is broken, Gambhir may face an extended stay on the sidelines. But with Delhi seemingly back on track, not many, including Gambhir, will be complaining.