As Punjab Kings (PBKS) takes on Rajasthan Royals (RR) in its second straight home game at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium here on Saturday, it would want its openers to come off well in the Powerplay.
Jonny Bairstow and Shikhar Dhawan haven’t quite fired the way the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) openers have and that’s been a cause for concern for the Kings.
Batting coach Sanjay Bangar was seen having a chat with them on Thursday, and Bairstow, facing throwdowns from Bangar on Friday, was seen smoking a couple of straight sixes.
Bowling coach Charl Langeveldt on Friday said that he expected the big foreign signings (in this case, batters) who’ve been patchy so far - Bairstow, Liam Livingstone, and Sam Curran - to “hopefully turn it around sooner than later.”
In terms of bowling, the Kings had their best Powerplay of the season in their last match versus Sunrisers and would want to keep it up on Saturday. And Kagiso Rabada had set the tone with a fine first over.
“I think he’s in a positive mindset. We want him to take wickets for us. He started well for us the other night (vs. SRH), so I think his mindset is very positive. He’s a wicket-taker for us,” Langeveldt said.
Livingstone was seen practising big-hitting against the spinners in the nets on Friday and coach Langeveldt said the decision on his inclusion would be taken on the matchday.
Yashasvi Jaiswal was the first to face throwdowns in the Royals nets and his team would just hope for him to score big on Saturday.
In the pre-match press conference, offie Keshav Maharaj said that the mood in the dressing room was positive, with inputs from captain Sanju Samson and other experienced players such as Jos Buttler.
“I think you always want leaders within the team. Obviously, Sanju bhai is the leader of the team and he entrusts certain people. It’s always good in a cricket team whether you’re young or old, to have good advice. There’s nothing wrong with passing on the information because you never know when it may help,” he said.
“Jos has captained his country in World Cups. So, I think bouncing off his knowledge and helping the bowlers has really shown in this tournament. I mean, winning four out of five games is a good start to the tournament. I think the bowlers like having him at a mid-off and mid-on, just so that they can lean on him when they need advice.”
Maharaj admitted that Sandeep Sharma was carrying a niggle but didn’t provide an update on the pacer’s return, who, if fit and available, would be an asset for the Royals in the death overs.
For the Kings, much would depend on the bowlers restricting the power-packed Royals batting.
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