Punjab Kings finally shed their conservative approach

At the end of IPL 2021, it was almost a reset for both franchises – Royal Challengers Bangalore and Punjab Kings. One lost their skipper to the new franchise, the other had no skipper at the franchise. So, when Faf du Plessis walked out alongside Mayank Agarwal at the toss, there was a third new person accompanying them, ‘intent’. 

While Brendon McCullum might have made the phrase, “If you can't change a man, change the man,” popular in the IPL, Anil Kumble gave a similar notice prior to the start of the 2022 season. When Kumble said, “You can’t take a conservative approach in T20,” it was almost like he was taking a jibe at KL Rahul.

New captain, new Punjab, new approach? Mayank’s side just had the three foreigners for their first encounter, there was the big hole in the absence of Jonny Bairstow. But in between Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Liam Livingstone, Shahrukh Khan and Odean Smith, there was enough power. 

Unlike most other seasons, Punjab really worked on building a team that was T20 ready. A team that took unreal pressure and converted the game around its head with pure power-hitting. At the Auction, they were clear about their plans, so much so they invited Dan Weston on board, to have an independent approach to their thinking.

“Even when we picked the domestic players, we looked at the roles they could play and that clarity is very important in T20’s. At the end, you don’t just put together a squad for this year. You invest in a few players who will perhaps be the future,” added Kumble in an interview with the Hindustan Times ahead of the season opener. 

The team that was picked, stuck by the shared ambition, of being explosive, of being aggressive, of not taking measured risks but rather taking risks that could turn encounters on their heads. On paper at least. 

When they conceded 205, a few franchises might have been very concerned but Mayank and his team would have rather gone to the dressing room with plenty of smile on their faces. But it was far away from that in the field, he was expressive, he was constantly communicating with his team, with the players, with the stars. 

Odean Smith, on debut, conceded 52 runs but that is the perk of being an all-rounder, you can always make it up with the bat. Even when that happened, Mayank walked around and patted Smith, sort of affirming the trust that the franchise had shown in the player. 

In both IPL 2020 and 2021, Punjab had conceded a lot of high scores and were always in front of the game for 60% of the clashes but the 40% was the difference. The difference between qualifying for the knock-out stages and narrowly missing the playoff spot. Here in 2022, they were chasing that elusive 40%, with a new face, a new hope. 

Punjab’s batting set well up

Punjab have always had a great top-order in the recent past but the inclusion of Shikhar Dhawan was meant to take their batting make-up to a greater height. In between Mayank and Dhawan, they scored 61 runs, off just 42 balls, blunting Bangalore’s new ball prowess. 

Mayank won the toss, his side were chasing, they had ticked several key boxes for a win but they still had to put the hard yards: scoring those runs. And when Mayank perished, there was Bhanuka Rajapaksa, who in Jonny Bairstow’s absence might not even have had the opportunity to make his way into this Punjab XI. It wasn’t ideal, it was never going to be ideal with key players missing encounters but the most successful of teams, find a way. 

For Punjab, it was Rajapaksa. As revealed by the Sri Lankan himself, Dhawan wanted the left-hander to play with a free-hand and so did he. He was everything that the franchise demanded of him: fearless, entertaining and more importantly, impactful. And when he took on his country mate, Wanindu Hasaranga, it was evident.

Mayank’s Punjab were not playing the second-fiddle, were never meant to play that either. They were holding their chips well over their shoulders, they were not just playing the game but playing the man. They were rather playing the very ideology of T20 cricket, with their power-hitting. 

It wasn’t just Rajapaksa, it was Rajapaksa, Liam Livingstone, Shahrukh Khan and Odean Smith. Some had valuable contributions while the others, including Odean, had invaluable contributions. Odean’s innings was one for the ages, a knock that was pure-brute force. The Caribbean power was truly in Mumbai. 

Bangalore missed their opportunities and Punjab took theirs. For the longest part of the first few overs, Faf’s men were playing the slow game and by the end, they were struggling to catch their breaths with Punjab’s trailblazers.

Dan Weston, Julian Wood, Mayank Agarwal and Anil Kumble, in no particular order, would be gleaming with joy. The stars are aligning in Punjab’s favour, and for once in the last two years, they are ready to shed the conservative approach.