Indian Premier League franchise Kings XI Punjab has changed the skipper almost every season and their tally, which started with the form of Yuvraj Singh in an inaugural edition in 2008, stands at nine. Yuvraj was followed by Kumara Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Adam Gilchrist, David Hussey, George Bailey, David Miller, Murali Vijay and now all-rounder Glenn Maxwell, who becomes the fourth Australian to lead Mohali-based IPL team.
Adding to the woes, Punjab’s former skipper Murali Vijay is ruled out of the IPL as he is scheduled to undergo surgery on his left shoulder and right wrist, according to the BCCI press release.
Even though Punjab had availed the services of many star cricketers and valuable buys in the recent past, they failed to respond to the opposition.
Kings XI Punjab had a string of lows and highs every passing season as they had finished bottom of the table last year which turned to be a shambolic season.
However, under the dynamic leadership of George Bailey, they reached the grand final in 2014 before losing out against Kolkata Knight Riders by three wickets in Bengaluru.
It’s time for newly appointed Glenn Maxwell to deliver for his side as he is seen as the glimmer of hope for Punjab. The leadership is what teams relied on in the past to win the coveted titles after pulling out of box ideas.
Kings XI Punjab has also availed the services of seven coaches which included Tom Moody for the first edition, followed by Michael Bevan in 2011, Adam Gilchrist as a mentor in 2012 and current Australian coach Darren Lehmann mentored the team in 2013.
However, Sanjay Bangar was replaced by Virender Sehwag for the ninth edition and Jagadeesh Arunkumar has been announced as the head coach for the tenth edition, who will be assisted by Mithun Manhas.
In 134 matches, Kings XI Punjab has so far claimed 63 wins which include two tied games which they eventually won in the super over.
However, it seems they have done a great homework to make a solid team for this season, but their success depends on showing the faith in left-arm spinners Axar Patel, Swapnil Singh, KC Cariappa and Rahul Tewatia.
Kings XI Punjab’s Strength is Their Batting: Kings XI Punjab would be mostly relying on their batting line-up. They have an explosive stock available in the form of David Miller, Glenn Maxwell and experienced campaigner from England as Eoin Morgan, who hits the ball a long way.
New Zealand’s hard-hitting sensation Martin Guptill has reinforced the batting line-up after he was picked by Punjab owners in a prudent deal in this year’s auction. However, he has been marred by injuries when on national duty.
All-rounder Glenn Maxwell has been touted as the vital cog for Punjab as he also rolls over arm while equally giving his best during fielding.
While depending on foreign recruits, Kings XI Punjab is boosted by livewire on the field who could save vital runs for their side as numbers equally make a huge difference in the thrilling contests.
All-rounders would play a crucial role for Punjab team who has also availed the services of Twenty20 World Cup winning captain Darren Sammy, who would add insights as he is two-time World T20 winning captain.
Australia all-rounder Marcus Stoinis is also seen as the vital cog for Punjab – to perform both with bat and ball.
Weakness Lack Of Experience And Depth In Bowling: The inexperienced bowling line-up could be a weaklink for Punjab side as they have only foreign seamer in the list in the form of Kiwis’ Matt Henry.
Twenty20 is a fast-paced version but it’s not all about the speed guns neither smashing of the willow with eyes closed. It would be a big test for pace bowlers including Mohit Sharma, Sandeep Sharma, and Varun Aaron, who has a raw pace followed by bounce which may be effective given to the home conditions that traditionally support seamers.
However, they lack the required experience to treat any of the opponents on a flat surface.
The main architect for their bowling would be New Zealander Matt Henry, but it depends on the selection of players for games. However, banking on the swing bowler, Sandeep would be trying to deliver his best which is arguably tough task for him in away games.
Morgan is likely to leave the squad for his international duty against Ireland in May. It would be tough task to ask the bowlers to deliver in every game as there are
Opportunity For Punjab Recruits: Punjab has knitted their hopes on the tenth edition of IPL in a bid to swing the pendulum to create history while giving their best shot in lucrative league.
Moreover, the players would like to step up and deliver as the competitive unit to give their fans thousands of reasons before giving a sigh of relief to the team management who had done a lot of homework in all the seasons so far.
The 25-year-old left-arm pacer from Tamil Nadu Thangarasu Natarajan, who fetched INR 3 crore in this year’s auction, could play a crucial role for his outfit whose stock ball is a Yorker.
Threat Pitching In: It won’t be that easy for Glenn Maxwell to pick the Playing XI on his own as he is yet to dictate his terms to the world of cricket as a skipper.
Picking the side would be a huge challenge for team management as well as they are also supposed to take care of overall line-up followed by a local pool of bowling contingent which has outnumbered the foreign buys in terms.