Some bad news crept in for the Punjab Kings (PBKS) right ahead of their IPL 2024 clash against Mumbai Indians (MI) on Thursday, April 18. PBKS skipper Shikhar Dhawan is currently undergoing rehab after suffering a shoulder injury during their last home game against the Sunrisers Hyderabad. This injury forced him to miss the following match against the Rajasthan Royals, with English all-rounder Sam Curran taking the captain's armband in his absence.
The news gets worse for Punjab Kings fans. Dhawan's recovery timeline means he'll likely miss not just the clash versus Mumbai Indians but also the upcoming match against the Gujarat Titans on April 21.
Shikhar Dhawan to miss match against Mumbai Indians
On the eve of the match, PBKS spin-bowling coach Sunil Joshi came up with a huge update on Dhawan's injury. In the pre-match press conference he said:
“Regarding Shikhar, the medical team will update. As for now, he is under rehab.”
While Dhawan might not be having a stellar IPL season so far, with only 152 runs in five innings, he's still the leading run scorer for the Punjab Kings. However, his strike rate of 125.61 suggests he might not be scoring quickly enough for the team's needs. This lack of form at the top of the order is a concern for the Punjab Kings, according to their spin-bowling coach, Sunil Joshi. He emphasised the need for the top batsmen to find their rhythm and lift the team's performance. Currently, the Kings are struggling in seventh place with just two wins and four losses.
A positive note for the Punjab Kings has been the consistent contributions from their lower-order batsmen, Shashank Singh and Ashutosh Sharma. These 'unsung heroes' have stepped up on multiple occasions to compensate for the struggles of the top order.
“See it’s always like bowlers win tournaments, batsmen win matches. And our bowling unit is definitely doing well consistently in all the areas. It’s time our batters take responsibility,” Joshi further said.
“We have addressed the areas where we needed to look at, to score runs. And also coming into this wicket, it’s a challenge for batters also. Straightaway, unlike other wickets in India, this is a challenging wickets for every batter, especially for the visitors, it’s going to be a challenge because the nature of bounce is completely different. So, it’s advantage for us, I guess,” he added.
Dhawan's struggles at the top of the order aren't the only concern for the Punjab Kings. His opening partner, Jonny Bairstow, has also been in poor form, managing just 96 runs in six innings. The team's hopes for a strong middle order haven't materialized either, with both Prabhsimran Singh and Jitesh Sharma failing to find consistency. Singh has scored 119 runs in six innings, while Sharma has only managed 106 runs in the same number of innings.
These struggles are particularly worrisome for Jitesh Sharma, as the World Cup selection is approaching. With an average of just 17.66, he will be under immense pressure to perform if he wants to secure a spot in the Indian national team.
“In T20s, when you go through the first half of the tournament you will understand what sort of an approach you need to look at. At the same time you need to look at the target and whether you can approach it in a different way to approach that target because we have done well in the middle and we have had a great finish. Two new boys — Shashank and Ashutosh — have chipped in. It’s time for the top-order to get into the groove and do a good job for us,” Joshi concluded.
MORE ON SPORTS TAK:
WATCH - Kuldeep Yadav gets furious on Delhi Capitals teammate, shouts ‘pagal wagal hai kya!’
