Punjab Kings’ form has just tailed off a bit in the last couple of games, probably a reflection of their skipper Shreyas Iyer’s campaign as well and hence, a win on Saturday against his former franchise might just prove to be the shot in the arm for Ponting and Co as they make the playoff run.
Punjab Kings have been there and thereabouts in the 2025 edition of the IPL, but they haven’t gotten on a home stretch where they would feel comfortable with the playoffs approaching. The Kings still have a lot of time and games remaining in the tournament but with the Mumbai Indians making a move, they can’t sleep peacefully.
The Kings have to blame themselves too, with a few players losing form and the batting line-up not being able to negotiate some of the tough conditions but given how they stack up, they need runs from their top and middle order. With the opponent being the Kolkata Knight Riders again, who might have a mental scar of that Mullanpur loss, Punjab Kings will be keen for a double and especially skipper Shreyas Iyer, who got out cheaply in the previous fixture and would want to sign off on a high against his former franchise.
The Kings got Josh Inglis into the side to shore up their batting a bit but the wicketkeeper-batter hasn’t done anything extraordinary and Glenn Maxwell with his ability to bowl might just be a better proposition for the visitors for the overall balance of the line-up, especially considering the number of left-handers in the KKR batting line-up.
With the Kings not opting for Lockie Ferguson’s replacement, Xavier Bartlett is likely to retain his spot, however, Punjab Kings might mull on Harpreet Brar’s place in the side. If Maxwell comes in for his off-spin due to the presence of a number of left-handers in KKR’s line-up, Brar could be left out for the same reason and the Kings might call back death-overs specialist, Vyshak Vijaykumar, something which they would require on a small ground like the Eden Gardens.
The rest of the line-up is likely to remain the same for the Punjab Kings as they aim to get into the mix for the playoffs with a few important games coming up.
PBKS’ likely XI against KKR for Match No 44: Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Priyansh Arya, Shreyas Iyer (c), Josh Inglis / Glenn Maxwell, Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Xavier Bartlett, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal, Vyshak Vijaykumar
