Who Is Mitchell Owen, The Big-Hitting Aussie Who Replaced Maxwell In PBKS

Punjab Kings (PBKS) picked all-rounder Mitch Owen as a replacement for Glenn Maxwell, who has been ruled out of the remainder of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 due to a broken finger.

Born in September 2001 in Hobart, Tasmania, Owen has already played 34 T20s in his career and scored 646 runs, including two centuries and a highest score of 108. The all-rounder also has 10 T20 wickets to his name. 

While he made his T20 debut as early as 2021 in the Big Bash League (BBL), it was only in the 2024/25 season that he truly came into his own after shifting to opening from a middle-order batting role. 

The 23-year-old all-rounder’s biggest claim to fame, his two centuries, came in the recent BBL season for the Hobart Hurricanes. One of his centuries, a splendid 108 off just 42 deliveries that included 11 sixes, came against the Sydney Thunder in the final of BBL 2024/25. He also equalled the record for the fastest BBL century, helping the Hurricanes to their maiden title. 

The all-rounder who bowls right-arm medium pace (which is still a work in progress as he averages 44.25 in T20s) is adept at using the long levers and brute strength to send the ball across the boundary rope with ease. He also smashed a 149 off just 69 deliveries for Tasmania in the One-Day Cup.

So far, he has played 17 List A games, and averages 25.07 with the bat, which is three runs/dismissal less than his T20 batting average. He has also played 13 First Class matches for Tasmania after making his Sheffield Shield debut on October 3, 2023, against South Australia. 

His performances at the domestic and BBL level earned him contracts with the Paarl Royals in SA20 and Peshawar Zalmi in the Pakistan Super League (PSL). However, he scored only 14 runs in three innings at the SA20 and 101 runs in six innings at the PSL. That's in stark contrast to his numbers in the BBL with the bat, where he averages 33.18 and strikes at 184.37. 

Earlier, Corbin Bosch ditched the PSL in the middle to play in the IPL, which caused the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to take action against him. However, the situation is different for Owen, who will be joining the IPL only after his PSL commitments are over, which is either May 16 (when the PSL league stages end) or May 18 (if Zalmi reach the final). 

PBKS will be able to use him only if they manage to reach the playoffs (which begins May 20), and he can be a useful addition to their side with his big hitting prowess coming into the picture on Indian wickets, which are generally great for batting.