Shikhar Dhawan has been named the new captain of the Punjab Kings (PBKS) team for the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023.
In the 2023 season of the lucrative league, Dhawan, who is not a member of the Indian T20 World Cup team, will take the place of opener Mayank Agarwal as the franchise’s new skipper.
Punjab Kings confirmed the news for IPL 2023 on their twitter account. “Gabbar will be at the Shikhar for Punjab Kings! #SherSquad, welcome your Skipper, Jatt ji! #ShikharDhawan #CaptainGabbar #SaddaPunjab #PunjabKings @SDhawan25,” the franchise captioned their post on the microblogging site.
Agarwal’s performance
Agarwal joined the Punjab franchise in 2018 and teamed up well with KL Rahul, the captain up to the 2021 season.
Prior to the IPL 2022 season, Dhawan, who had enormous success with Delhi Capitals (DC), released by the team captained by Rishabh Pant. In the IPL 2020, Dhawan scored 618 runs for Delhi Capitals at a strike rate of nearly 145. Punjab Kings acquired the seasoned Indian opener at the super auction for a staggering INR 8.25 crore.
Dhawan’s performance in last IPL season
The provisional captain of Team India scored 460 runs in 14 games during his first season with the Punjab Kings in the IPL 2022. Dhawan, one of the best left-handed batsmen in white-ball cricket, has represented Team India in 161 ODIs and 68 T20 Internationals. Dhawan has scored the second-most runs in IPL history. In 162 IPL games, Dhawan has scored 5,881 runs. Additionally, Dhawan has hit the most fours (701 total) in the cash-rich league.
Soon, Punjab Kings shared another tweet, and made it official. Gabbar will be at the 𝗦𝗵𝗶𝗸𝗵𝗮𝗿 for Punjab Kings!
Dhawan, who has participated in the IPL since its first season in 2008, is among the most seasoned players in the league. Dhawan has captained the sides in 11 games in the IPL, (ten for Sunrisers in 2014 and one for Kings last year).
It is uncertain whether Kings will keep Agarwal or release him. Before the upcoming IPL, franchises must submit a list of the players they intend to keep by November 15. As mandated by IPL retention rules, Kings consented to pay Agarwal INR 12 crore in salary; nevertheless, INR 18 crore was withheld from their entire budget—14 crore for Agarwal and 4 crore for Arshdeep, who at the time had no salary cap.
But their new captain, Dhawan, also has good experience leading Indian at the international level. He led the Indian side on significant tours to Sri Lanka in 2021, the West Indies in 2022, and Zimbabwe this year, all of which resulted in series victories for the men in blue. Now he is ready to lead the Indian team in the upcoming ODI series against New Zealand, which will begin on November 25.
The Punjab Kings franchise, part of IPL since it’s inception, has yet to claim the championship.
