Jitesh Sharma. (Source -Twitter/X)
With Shikhar Dhawan currently injured and Sam Curran returned to England for international duty, Punjab Kings (PBKS) have appointed Jitesh Sharma as their new captain. The India international will lead the team against Sunrisers Hyderabad in their final league game of the IPL 2024 season. Notably, the wicketkeeper-batter was part of the official captain’s photoshoot ahead of the season and was expected to lead the team in Dhawan’s absence.
However, Curran was handed the baton when Dhawan injured his shoulder and was ruled out of the tournament. The England international had prior experience leading Punjab and was preferred ahead of Jitesh. Now, with him gone, Jitesh finally has the opportunity to lead the side and insists that his team will play a fearless brand of cricket to end the season with a victory.
The 30-year-old also summed up PBKS’ season and stated that the team was inconsistent throughout the season. Despite being at number nine on the points table, Jitesh believes that they had plenty of positives in the form of Shashank Singh, Ashutosh Sharma, Harpreet Brar and Prabhsimran Singha and noted that the team wasn’t lucky this time around.
“The mood is more positive in the dressing room than before because we have nothing to lose now. The season has been inconsistent for us. But we played really good cricket and we had many positives throughout the season. The way Shashank Singh and Ashutosh Sharma have played was excellent, and Harpreet Brar and Prabhsimran Singh have also been in good form throughout the season. In cricket, things can change in an instant. We just missed out on some luck,” Jitesh said at the pre-match press conference.
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“Punjab Kings is famous for fearless cricket and we will be more fearless in the last game. Everyone will play with correct intent and we will be playing to win,” he added.
Injuries and international commitments affected Punjab Kings’ IPL 2024 campaign
Notably, Liam Livingstone and Kagiso Rabada had already left the PBKS squad with their respective injuries and after the game against Rajasthan Royals, the likes of Jonny Bairstow, Curran and Chris Woakes too left for international duty. At this moment, Nathan Ellis, Rilee Rossouw and Sikandar Raza are the only overseas options they have.