Follow UsNehal Wadhera might have made his Indian Premier League (IPL) debut in 2023, but it wasn’t until this year that the left-hander stamped his authority. Ahead of IPL 2025, Punjab Kings (PBKS) beat both Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Gujarat Titans (GT) to secure the services of the southpaw at INR 4.2 crore.
The 24-year-old has been on fire this year with the bat, smashing 189 runs, averaging 37.80 while striking at 146.51, his best-ever strike rate across all the IPL seasons. But interestingly, the left-hander revealed that he wasn’t even expecting to make his IPL debut in 2023, his first-ever season in the IPL.
“I wasn’t expecting to play in MI’s starting XI in my first year. To play in the XI only was a proud moment, and I knew that I could make it big from there. Even in the practice games, I did well,” Wadhera said in a round-table conference organised by Punjab Kings.
But what’s that one bit of performance that made him believe he’s ready for IPL?
“That was the first time I faced Archer, so when I batted against Archer, I think that was an actual moment where I had that self-confidence. As they say, it's not about being good, but it's about knowing that you are good,” he said.
"When I played Archer, I got the confidence from there that, yes, I am prepared for this level. So, when I made my debut from there, I was confident. But when I played for the Mumbai Indians, I always knew I couldn't have a fixed position in that team because all the international players were playing there, and all of them were very experienced. I was pretty okay with that," he added.
Ahead of IPL 2025, the Ludhiana-born spent a lot of time working on his batting alongside head coach Ricky Ponting. Wadhera revealed that he was ‘well aware’ that his role with PBKS was going to be of a floater, given his ability against spin.
“So, our conversations are pretty simple. We had camps in Dharamsala, and I spoke to him personally to check what batting position I would bat in. At the same time, he told me that I might be a ‘floater’ in the team because of my ability against spin,” Wadhera said.
The southpaw has been used extensively this season to counter left-arm spin and leg-spinners in the middle-overs. And he’s come good exactly in that regard, with 84 runs, averaging a staggering 60.5, with a strike rate of 144.05.
“The camps we had in Dharamsala with Ricky Ponting, he gave me tips and boosted my confidence. The other camps, as well, in Chandigarh and Mumbai, also helped me in terms of preparations for the IPL,” he added.
Earlier this season, on April 18 (Friday), Wadhera got the golden opportunity to prove his prowess against spin. At 52/3, PBKS still needed 44 runs to win a thriller against RCB, and with Josh Hazlewood moving the ball, it was the 24-year-old’s opportunity to ‘shine’.
The left-hander soaked in all the pressure early on and then took on the favourable match-up, smashing Suyash Sharma for 21 runs in 12 deliveries, striking at 175, which helped PBKS get over RCB in a nail-biter.
"I love playing under tough situations. It was a very good opportunity to prove myself. Before going out to bat, the coach came to me and he told me that, ‘Nehal, we just need run a ball, you can just go easy’,” he talked about the clash.
“I said, 'okay, coach', but as soon as I went inside, I felt that RCB put a lot of pressure on us at that time, so I felt that, now that I have come inside, my match-ups are there, and I think this is my responsibility now to make my team go through and put some pressure back on RCB.”