Gautam Gambhir seeks to shift 'focus' from politics to cricket

Former Indian cricketer Gautam Gambhir, who is also a member of the parliament (MP) from the country's ruling, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), wants some time off from politics to shift his "focus" to cricket, the Hindustan Times reported.

The former Indian captain has been an active member of Indian politics since 2019 and currently represents the East Delhi constituency in the Lok Sabha.

However, Gambhir has now requested the party's national president, JP Nadda, to relieve him of his political duties to focus on his cricket commitments.

It remains unclear if Gambhir plans to quit politics or not.

He shared the update on X, writing, "I have requested Hon’ble Party President JP Nadda ji to relieve me of my political duties so that I can focus on my upcoming cricket commitments. I sincerely thank Hon’ble PM Narendra Modi ji and Hon’ble HM Amit Shah ji for allowing me to serve the people. Jai Hind!"

There have been speculations that the BJP might replace some of the seven current MPs in Delhi with new faces for the upcoming general elections.

In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP had replaced two sitting Delhi MPs from the North West and East.

Gambhir joined the BJP before the 2019 Lok Sabha elections and contested from the East Delhi Lok Sabha seat, winning with more than 55% of votes. He defeated his closest rival, Congress candidate Arvinder Singh Lovely.