"I was not expecting him to demote himself down the order" - Ajay Jadeja on Mayank Agarwal's batting position against GT in IPL 2022 

Former Indian player Ajay Jadeja expressed his surprise at Mayank Agarwal's decision to demote himself in the batting order against Gujarat Titans (GT) on Tuesday. The Punjab Kings (PBKS) captain did not bat in the entirety of the IPL 2022 fixture after choosing to promote Jonny Bairstow alongside Shikhar Dhawan.

Even after the Englishman's early departure, Bhanuka Rajapaksa came in at No. 3 to forge a left-hand pair for the second wicket. The duo shared a vital 87-run stand on a sluggish wicket while chasing 144 as they won by eight wickets.

Believing that the revamped batting unit is more balanced, Jadeja said on Cricbuzz:

"I was not expecting Mayank to demote himself down the order. That is a big decision to take for a captain. If you see what is best for him, it is the opening slot but if you look at the team resources, this batting lineup, has people just coming in one after the other."

The PBKS captain has not been among the runs ever since taking responsibility. He has scored only 161 runs in nine innings so far at an average of 20.13.

Opining that Agarwal is more suited to the No. 3 spot, Pragyan Ojha said:

"Mayank Agarwal can be used in a versatile manner. I think he will come at No. 3 and the template will remain the same, but the roles will change just slightly. If Punjab keeps winning, then it will seem that there are no teams better than them."

The 27-year-old used to bat at the No. 3 spot a few seasons back when KL Rahul and Chris Gayle picked up the opening slots.

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"It was a mature thing to do" - Pragyan Ojha on Mayank Agarwal's decision to not bat

Barring a couple of starts and a solitary start, the PBKS skipper does not have much to show for the season. Despite Bairstow's failure at the top of the order, the side is likely to continue with the same approach at the business end of the season.

Terming the decision taken by Mayank Agarwal as mature, Ojha said:

"I believe that in the shortest format, if you open with Bairstow, he will give you starts and it fits well with the brand of cricket that Punjab are playing. So, it was a good move. Mayank knew that he was not getting the runs, so he gave himself a break, it was a mature thing to do. If you keep playing, you get stuck mentally after a point of time. I think he should come in at No.3 and Bairstow should get more chances at the top. If he plays well there, Punjab will not turn back."

PBKS will next take on the Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the Wankhede Stadium on May 7 (Saturday).