Punjab Kings CEO Satish Menon with cricketer Shreyas Iyer after he was introduced as their captain.
| Picture Credit score: PTI
It’s truthful to say change has been the one fixed for Punjab Kings.
The franchise tweaked its identify, went by way of 16 captains and 10 coaches in 17 seasons, and nearly all the time had a significant overhaul come public sale time. Success, nevertheless, has remained elusive.
The final time the Punjab outfit made the Indian Premier League playoffs, M.S. Dhoni was nonetheless an energetic Check cricketer and Lewis Hamilton had only one Drivers’ Championship.
The onus is now on the Shreyas Iyer-Ricky Ponting alliance to take the Kings one step additional than their runners-up end in 2014. And there may be scope for hope provided that the duo had a powerful stint in Delhi Capitals colors.
The skipper’s function, at No. 3, will likely be so as to add stability to a line-up that has power-hitters aplenty.
In Marcus Stoinis, Glenn Maxwell, Josh Inglis and Azmatullah Omarzai, the aspect has sufficient and extra international willow-wielders; the identical, nevertheless, can’t be mentioned in regards to the Indian a part of the set-up. Therefore, it’s crucial that Prabhsimran Singh and Shashank Singh — PBKS’ solely two retentions forward of the public sale — have an excellent season.
The likes of Nehal Wadhera, Musheer Khan and Vishnu Vinod have to chip in when known as upon.
The bowling arsenal seems to be promising and thrilling. The pace-battery will likely be led by the ever-reliable Arshdeep Singh, who was introduced again utilizing the Proper-to-Match (RTM) choice on the public sale. V. Vyshak, Yash Thakur, Kuldeep Sen and Lockie Ferguson present depth and selection.
South Africa all-rounder Marco Jansen — who is anticipated to bat at No. 7 — will act because the bridge between the bowling and batting wings although his main obligation will likely be to ship early wickets and arrange the sport for the tweakers.
Wily leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, IPL’s most prolific bowler, will likely be complemented by the left-arm spin of Harpreet Brar, whose strengths lie in accuracy and wicket-to-wicket line.
All issues thought-about, the Kings do have the firepower to go all the best way. However the query stays: can they exorcise the ghosts of the previous and produce a successful blueprint to again the personnel?
Revealed – March 12, 2025 11:25 pm is
