New Delhi: His positive prior experience of working with Shreyas Iyer has made Punjab Kings a transformed side in IPL 2025, head coach Ricky Ponting said after they were confirmed a top-two finish in the play-offs.
Punjab defeated Mumbai Indians by seven wickets on Monday to be secured of a top-two finish in the league stage standings, boosting chances of their aim of winning the tournament for the first time.
Ponting and skipper Shreyas had earlier guided Delhi Capitals to their maiden final appearance in IPL 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic for which the last leg had to be played in the UAE.
“I was pretty keen to work with him (Iyer) again. It was pretty obvious that how much money I was willing to spend on him at the auction. We had a great working relationship in Delhi, we made a final in Delhi under his captaincy,” Ponting told JioHotstar.
A successful captain for Australia, Ponting said Shreyas has all the attributed needed to be a successful leader.
“I’ve known him as a person and as a player for a long time. He’s a quality person and when you’ve got quality people around your team, when you’re trying to make a difference and you’re trying to change culture, that’s what you need,” he said.
“If you spoke to the players individually, I think every single one of them would give Shreyas a great rap because he has spent a lot of time with them.
“He’s pumped them up, he’s given them a pat on the back when they needed it, and he’s given them a kick in the pants when they’ve needed it as well, which is a sign of a really good and strong leader,” the former top-order batter added.
‘Job not done yet’
Though they have been one of the better performing teams of the tournament so far, Ponting reminded Punjab that they have keep performing in order to lift the trophy.
“I think it’s pretty obvious to see that this is a really talented team that are all on the same page and heading in the same direction,” he said.
“I mean yeah, it’s a great achievement till now but really, if you look back, we haven’t achieved anything yet. That’s the one thing I’ve been saying to the players since the moment we qualified.
“The vision for me was always to finish in the top two, and we’ve got there now. It’s a really happy group and we’ve enjoyed our time in each other’s company for the last ten weeks, but we’ve got another week to go yet.”
Punjab Kings defeated Mumbai Indians by seven wickets to be secured of a top-two finish in the IPL 2025 standings, boosting chances of their aim of winning the tournament for the first time. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
