IPL 2022: Best Benched XI from the fifth week of the season

7. Shahrukh Khan

The Tamil Nadu Finisher is one of the emerging players and is considered one of the prospects of Indian Cricket. He was picked by the Punjab Kings ahead of the 2021 IPL season. He has been bought again by the Punjab Kings for a whopping INR 9 crores this season. He played 7 matches scoring a total of 98 runs this season. He has not performed as expected but leaving him out of the playing XI may cost Punjab Kings later in the tournament. 

The overdependence on Liam Livingstone in the middle order and no proper partnerships in the middle phase of the innings have culminated in their downfall more than once. The ‘full-throttle attack’ approach has not worked for them in their recent outings. The starts from Shikhar Dhawan and Mayank Agrawal are not fully capitalized by the middle order. There also seems to be dearth of batting depth in their recent playing XIs.

Shahrukh has been a consistent contributor for his state side- Tamil Nadu. He can surely replicate that with the Punjab Kings but they need to give him a chance in the middle order and let him play his natural game. From now on, each game is of paramount importance for the Punjab Kings, and to exclude Shahrukh Khan from the playing 11 may not be the right tactic. If utilized properly, Shahrukh can turn out to be their gamechanger.