Kings XI Punjab turned out to be paupers after another miserable IPL campaign which ended in the most heartbreaking fashion. Punjab seemed to possess a decent side at the start of the IPL and many felt they could be the dark horse this season. However, they never quite got it right and finished last in the league table for the second time running.
They started this season with one skipper and ended with another. Such was the instability in their squad that David Miller lost his captaincy midway into this tournament and the reins were handed over to Murali Vijay. Miller failed to inspire his team with the willow when he was the captain as the team sank to one defeat after another.
They bought the likes of Mohit Sharma, Farhaan Behardein, Kyle Abbott and Marcus Stoinis at the auctions this year. A lot was expected from their retained players but they never got going at any stage of this competition. Let's talk about where Punjab lacked this season and where they missed the plot completely. Injury woes to some their main players surely derailed their campaign off track.
They lost an in-form Shaun Marsh to injury and rendered the services of Hashim Amla who joined the team as a replacement. At the back end of the tournament, Marcus Stoinis, and Glenn Maxwell also picked up injuries to leave Punjab high and dry. Punjab just won 4 games in the entire season losing the rest. These numbers, however, don't do justice to the talent they have on board.
Even their coach Sanjay Bangar made headlines for all the wrong reason this time after their team owner Preity Zinta got in a verbal scuffle with him following a close loss to Royal Challengers Bangalore.
There was brilliance to be seen from their players but that was few and far between. The bowlers were better than the batsmen for the majority of the season and they would have hoped to get some sort of momentum into their campaign but their batsmen let them down big time. There were occasions when the batting clicked but the bowling failed to back it up. Let's try to find some positives for the Kings this season.
Positives from the season:
It's hard to find positives in a team that finished with a wooden spoon. The bowling certainly was a stronger suit for the bottom-ranked Kings.
Sandeep Sharma impressed one and all with his ability to swing the new ball. His ability to bowl accurate yorkers in the death made him a valuable asset in the T20 asset. Mohit Sharma was amongst the wickets too and was pretty decent in the death even though he leaked runs in the last few games.
Another important highlight of their campaign was Axar Patel's hat trick against the Gujarat Lions. Patel though was hot and cold throughout the tournament, he would be the first one to acknowledge that he could have done better for the Kings.
Murali Vijay captaincy was not too shabby but the old saying of the captain being as good as his team was proven right yet again.
The all round ability of Marcus Stoinis was another positive and Punjab would do well to retain him for next season.
Hashim Amla also impressed with his adaptability when he joined Punjab as a replacement at the fag end of the season. He was quick to get among the runs and scored big in later matches almost getting a century in one of the games.
Where did it go wrong?
Not much clicked for them this season and the seniors in the side need to take responsibility for the disastrous season. A lot was expected from the duo of David Miller and Glen Maxwell but they disappointed game after game.
The team think-tank's patience ran off and Miller was unceremoniously stripped of the captaincy and the baton was passed to Murali Vijay. Miller did slightly better after that but it was too little and too late.
Wriddhiman Saha who was excellent in the last few seasons disappointed with the bat this season as well. Also, young talent Manan Vohra disappointed after starting well.
Lack of an experienced spinner has hurt Punjab in a big way. Axar Patel, Pradeep Sahu and KC Cariappa are all young Indian players finding their feet at the moment.
The form of the veteran Mitchell Johnson also never evoked confidence. Johnson who has retired from international cricket seems to have lost a bit of a zip and was below par in this tournament.
The bowlers leaked runs in the death in the last few games of the IPL to make it worse. They managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory in quite a few games and never seemed to capitalise on their position of strength.
The road ahead:
How dearly would Punjab want to get some valuable experience into their side! Getting Hashim Amla into their side is a good start and now they should want to rejig their batting line-up and could do with some smart picks in the next year’s auctions.
It’s imperative from Punjab’s point of view to keep faith in their current impact players. They should add some quality Indian batting talent as well in their ranks if they hope to make a comeback anytime soon.
Verdict:
The Kings can take heart from the fact that they can only go upwards from here. They have hit rock bottom and their campaign was filled with disappointments and nothing more. Their fans would be gutted but would want them to come back stronger in 2017.
For finishing with a wooden spoon and managing a meagre 8 points from 14 games, all they get is 2/10 for their efforts this season.
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