"I want to be myself, because that's the best way I can get the best out of myself."

"When it comes to captaincy, I don't want to imitate anyone," Krunal told reporters in Kolkata. "I want to learn good things from everyone, but at the same time, I want to be myself. And if I be myself and do it my way, then the chances of me doing well for the team are higher.

"I've played cricket hard, I've played cricket in a certain way, and I am applying the same thing here as well."

By the end of the league stage, the Pandya brothers could also be No. 1 and 2 on the points table, and one reason for their success, Krunal says, is that leadership comes naturally to them.

"Both Hardik and I have played cricket in a certain way, whether we were leaders within the team or not... we have always taken that responsibility," he said. "We have always seen the game as a leader.

"So when you see the game in that way, and then when you get the captaincy, it is slightly easier because you are already seeing the game in that way. What happened to KL is a big loss for us, but I've taken this challenge and I'm looking forward to it."

Earlier in the afternoon, Krunal and Nicholas Pooran unveiled a special jersey for Saturday's game. The maroon-coloured jersey is inspired by the Indian football club Mohun Bagan FC - also owned by Sanjiv Goenka's RPSG group - which has now been rechristened as Mohun Bagan Super Giant.

Krunal hoped that having support from fans of the football club in Kolkata would lift their own performance.

"Yes, I know about Mohun Bagan," Krunal said. "Mohun Bagan won the [ISL] trophy this year. Wherever you go, the more support you get, the better you do. So I request all Mohun Bagan supporters to come out and cheer for us. Our focus is to go out there and play cricket the way Lucknow is known to play."