If one purely goes by form and performance this season, then hosts Gujarat Lions start as favourites against Kings XI Punjab when they come up against each other at the Saurashtra Cricket Ground on Sunday. With six wins from seven games, the Lions top the table, while KXIP are bottom dwellers with just a solitary win in six matches. A closer look at the table shows that despite the vast gap in position, the difference in points is not huge. Kings XI are exactly in the same spot as Mumbai Indians, who had just one win from their first six games last season, but in a remarkable turnaround, went on to win the trophy. All is still not lost for KXIP, who are seeking a quick turnaround. The management announced that opener M Vijay will now lead the team while David Miller is expected to focus on his primary skill – batting. Known to smash bowling attacks, Miller has had a dull season with just 76 runs in six innings. Coach Sanjay Bangar, who conveyed the decision to Miller, said it was done to help the southpaw contribute more with the bat. “We felt that David Miller’s batting was suffering because of the extra responsibility of captaincy. The decision was to just free him up from additional responsibility. He is an integral part of the team. We are looking forward to his contributions with the bat,” said Bangar. “IPL is such a format where best of the players sit out. It is not the first instance where midway through the season there has been a change in captaincy. I think eight or nine times in the past, the captains have been changed. Basically, we’re looking to turn things around and it is a step in that direction,” he added. With the arm-band being now handed over to Vijay, Bangar said the elegant batsman was keen to take up the role. Vijay first captained the Tamil Nadu team in the Vijay Hazare Trophy for four games in 2009 and in the same season led the team in two games in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. In the 2011-12 season, he led Tamil Nadu in 5 T20 games. “He was very keen to take up the role. He did it successfully with Tamil Nadu but has not been available for them on a regular basis (due to India duty). He has experience of captaincy. We felt that he settled into the team nicely, which was not the case last year. Having him definitely will help the team quite a bit.” While Lions’ are on a three-match winning spree, Bangar felt that momentum in IPL can be countered with individual brilliance. With the likes of Glenn Maxwell, Mitchell Johnson, Shaun Marsh and Miller in the side, KXIP have it in them to humble their opponents. “On a given day any team can beat anybody. Form and momentum does not really matter. What matters is individual brilliance. A batsman or a bowler becoming the go-to man and finishing the job for the team.” While Bangar credited the Sharmas – Mohit and Sandeep – for their decent show with the ball, he urged the Indian batters to step up. “Not only the overseas players, but we would like the Indian batters to contribute more. Indian bowlers – Mohit Sharma and Sandeep Sharma – have been really good. They have bowled well for us. The batters need to stay till the 15th – 16th over so that our stroke makers can come and play their strokes. I think the turnaround is just round the corner.”