"Will Treat Chahal And Bus Driver Same Way": PBKS Star's Big Team Revelation

Punjab Kings (PBKS) sealed a spot in the Qualifier 1 of IPL 2025 with a convincing seven-wicket win over Mumbai Indians (MI) in Jaipur on Monday. A top finish two finish means they'll have two shots at securing a place in the IPL 2025 final. Following their win over MI, batter Shashank Iyer credited head coach Ricky Ponting and captain Shreyas Singh for the franchise's first-ever playoffs since 2014. Shreyas joined PBKS for Rs 26.75 crore after being released by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), who he led them to the title last year.

Ponting, on the other hand, arrived after an eventful stint as head coach of Delhi Capitals (DC). Iyer now has the chance to become the first captain to win two back-to-back IPL titles with different teams.

Shashank praised Ponting and Shreyas for bringing a positive cultural change into the side, saying that they would treat Yuzvendra Chahal, who is the senior most player in the team, the same was as the bus driver.

"Day 1, Ricky Ponting and Shreyas both told us. Like, they will treat Yuzvendra Chahal, maybe the most senior player, and our bus driver the same. I mean, this is something and they have maintained this. They have shown the same respect to Yuzvendra Chahal and to our bus driver, which says a lot about the team," Shashank said after the match.

Shashank also revealed how Ponting has been instrumental in instilling self-belief in all the members of the Punjab Kings squad.

"He (Ponting) has changed the team culture. He has changed our mindset. He has changed our beliefs. So, all those things, the credit has to be to him. Because, obviously, he is the one who changed our perspective towards the game. Culture, what I said. Caring about each other. Respecting each other. I mean, it's very easy to say all these things," Shashank revealed.

"Obviously, you need to do this, you need to do that. But again, building it is a different thing. So, he made sure that he built the culture within the dressing," he added.

Trending News