Ricky Ponting, former Australia cricketer, has been named the head coach of the Punjab Kings (PBKS) franchise ahead of the IPL 2025. Ponting has had coaching stints in IPL with Mumbai Indians and most recently, he was head coach of Delhi Capitals for seven years.
Ponting took over as head coach of the Capitals in 2018, and they made the playoffs three years in a row from 2019 to 2021 before reaching their first IPL final in 2020.
Under Ponting’s guidance, Delhi Capitals made it to their maiden IPL final in the 2020 edition but lost to Mumbai Indians in the summit clash. However, for the last three seasons, DC failed to make it into the playoffs and this was the possible reason for Ponting and the Rishabh Pant-captained franchise parting ways.
Punjab Kings appoint Ricky Ponting as head coach; to choose his coaching staff
Ponting will be Punjab’s sixth head coach in seven seasons, with the team finishing ninth in 2024. They have not made the IPL playoffs since 2014, when they finished in second place. Ponting comes to the PBKS franchise after leading Washington Freedom to the MLC 2024 title.
As per ESPNCricinfo, Ponting has agreed to a multiyear contract with Punjab, a club with numerous owners. Ponting, it is assumed, will make the final decision on the remaining coaching staff. There is no word yet on who continues on the coaching staff from last year: Trevor Bayliss (head coach), Sanjay Bangar (head of cricket development), Charl Langeveldt (fast-bowling coach), and Sunil Joshi (spin-bowling coach).
Ponting’s first issue would be to identify players who could be kept for the following season while the franchises wait for the IPL to finalize the retention guidelines.
Harshal Patel, who got the purple cap for the second time in IPL 2024, and uncapped Indians Shashank Singh and Ashutosh Sharma were crucial performances for Punjab last season. Punjab Kings could retain left-arm fast bowler Arshdeep Singh, wicketkeeper-batsman Jitesh Sharma, and legspinner Rahul Chahar.
In terms of overseas players, PBKS may keep players like Sam Curran, Liam Livingstone, Johnny Bairstow, and South Africa’s Kagiso Rabada.
With Shikhar Dhawan retiring recently, Punjab will also be keen to identify a new captain.
Also Read: Rishabh Pant Or Mohammad Rizwan? Danish Kaneria Picks Who’s The Bigger Star