IPL 2022: Best Starting playing XI of Punjab Kings (PBKS) after mega auction

One of the teams that had a successful outing in the mega auction was the Punjab Kings franchise. Ahead of the auction, the Punjab franchise had made only 2 retentions- Mayank Agarwal and Arshdeep Singh. They had the biggest purse heading into the event and fair enough to say, the Kings covered all the bases that they were required to fill. England’s hard-hitting all-rounder Liam Livingstone was the most expensive buy made by the side. He was bought after an intense bidding duel for INR 11.5 Crore. The side was also successful in buying key players such as Shikhar Dhawan, Jonny Bairstow, Odean Smith, Shahrukh khan, and U19 all-rounder Raj Bawa. Here we will take a look at the best starting XI of Punjab Kings: 1. Mayank Agarwal Mayank Agarwal. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) One of India’s current best opening batters, Mayank Agarwal was one of the two players retained by the side heading into the mega auction. Since being bought by Punjab Kings in the 2018 auction, the right-hander has had one of the most consistent runs in the tournament. The batter, originally from Karnataka was retained by the Kings for INR 12 Crore. Since starting to play for the Kings, Agarwal has featured in 47 matches and has scored 1,317 runs. His only century in the IPL came against the Rajasthan Royals in 2020 when he scored 106. He came agonizingly close to his second IPL century in the 2021 season when he remained not out on 99 against the Delhi Capitals. With the additional responsibility of a possible captaincy, it will be interesting to see how Mayank goes about his batting in the upcoming season. 2. Shikhar Dhawan Shikhar Dhawan. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Shikhar Dhawan is one of the most experienced batters to have played in the tournament. Dhawan’s name started a bidding war between the Rajasthan Royals and the Delhi Capitals. After RR left the bid at INR 4.8 Crores Punjab jumped in. After prolonged bidding, the southpaw finally went to the PBKS for a huge sum of INR 8.25 Crores. In KL Rahul’s absence, Dhawan can be the perfect Indian opening option for the PBKS as he has quite the experience playing in one of the leading T20 tournaments in the world. Shikhar Dhawan has played 192 matches in the IPL, scoring a staggering 5783 at an average of 34.63 at a strike of 126.63. He has scored 2 centuries in the competition till now. 3. Jonny Bairstow Jonny Bairstow. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) One of the most aggressive batters in the competition in the last few years, Jonny Bairstow was one of the hot commodities heading into the competition. The wicketkeeper batter had played for the Sunrisers Hyderabad in his earlier seasons at the IPL. The wicketkeeper batter from Yorkshire got sold to the PBKS for Rs 6.75 crores in the mega auction. For Bairstow, a bidding war took place between PBKS and Sunrisers Hyderabad, and in the end, the wicketkeeper went to Punjab. In 28 matches he has played in the IPL, Bairstow has scored 1,038 runs at an average of 41.52 and strike-rate of 142.19, including a century and seven fifties. 4. Liam Livingstone Liam Livingstone. (Photo by Philip Brown/Popperfoto/Popperfoto via Getty Images) Liam Livingstone is one of the hardest hitters of the ball in world cricket currently. He has improved his bowling significantly too and can play as an all-rounder at number four. Livingstone’s rise in white-ball cricket has been meteoric over the last 12 months. He was not the preferred player in England’s playing XI not long ago but made his place in the team with his consistent show in the absence of regular players. Livingstone ended up playing the T20 World Cup in the UAE and can certainly make the difference for Punjab Kings in the middle-order. 5. Raj Bawa Raj Bawa. (Photo by Matthew Lewis-ICC/ICC via Getty Images) One of the brightest stars of India’s victorious Under-19 World Cup, Raj Bawa is a rare combination of right-arm pace and left-hand batting. Bawa played a key role in India winning the U19 World Cup earlier this year. The youngster took a five-wicket haul in the final of the ICC Under-19 World Cup and also broke Shikhar Dhawan’s record for the highest individual score by an Indian in the U19 WC. Bawa’s name started a bidding war between SRH and the Punjab Kings, with the Kings acquiring the all-rounder for INR 2 Crores. He will be crucial for Punjab given his all-round skills and it remains to be seen if he lives up to the expectations. 6. Shahrukh Khan Shahrukh Khan. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) The tall big-hitting all-rounder who originally hails from Tamil Nadu, was brought by the franchise for whom he played in the last season. Khan will be expected to provide the important impetus in the middle order which has been one of the many problems that plagued PBKS’ campaign last year. He was picked up by Punjab Kings for INR 9 crore. Shahrukh’s base price for the auction was INR 40 lakh. However, after a bidding war during the auction, he was eventually sold for 22.5 times his base price. The 26-year-old right-handed batter has played five first-class matches so far and has scored 231 runs at an average of 33. He has scored two fifties and his highest score is an unbeaten knock of 92. 7. Odean Smith Odean Smith. (Photo by Randy Brooks – CPL T20/Getty Images) Odean Smith has been one of the latest additions to the West Indies’s artillery of pacers who has the capability of hitting the ball out of the ground at will. The 25- year-old impressed one and all with his all-around skills in the recently concluded ODI series between India and the West indies. Smith was part of the West Indies Under-19 squad that won the World Cup in 2016 but has only burst onto the scene in the last six months. He impressed for Guyana Amazon Warriors in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) – Smith finished as the joint-second-highest wicket-taker in 2021. Punjab had to lock horns with the SRH and the LSG before they finally bought the all-rounder for INR 6.0 Crore and will be hoping that he delivers during the IPL later this year. 8. Harpreet Brar Harpreet Brar. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Left-handed all-rounder Harpreet Brar was one of the surprise finds for the Kings in the last season. Placed at a base price of INR 20 lakh, the all-rounder was bought back by the PBKS for INR 3.8 Crore. Brar made his debut last season and grabbed eyeballs with a terrific bowling spell. On 30 April 2021, against Royal Challengers Bangalore, Brar took his maiden IPL wicket, of Virat Kohli, and finished the match with figures of 3-19 in his four overs. He also took the wicket of Glenn Maxwell, which he took back to back alongside Kohli’s, and the wicket of AB de Villiers. His all-round skills will certainly be useful for Punjab down the order. 9. Kagiso Rabada Kagiso Rabada. (Photo by AAMIR QURESHI/AFP via Getty Images) Having been released by the Delhi Capitals ahead of the 2022 auctions, Rabada was predicted to create quite a bidding war between all 10 teams. With the ability to take wickets at all times in the game, teams wasted no time in bidding for the 26-year-old who played for the Delhi Capitals up till the 2021 season. Kagiso Rabada formed a good pair with Anrich Nortje in the Delhi side but now will have to take up new ball responsibilities alone in the Punjab Kings XI. If the pacer delivers, the team will definitely do well this season. 10. Rahul Chahar Rahul Chahar. (Photo Source: Twitter/BCCI) Rahul Chahar was part of Mumbai Indians in the last couple of seasons and played a crucial role in them winning the title in 2019 and 2020. On the back of performances for the five-time champions, the leggie was also picked in India’s T20 World Cup winning squad ahead of Yuzvendra Chahal. Chahar didn’t play much in 2021 season but scalped 28 wickets in the previous two IPL editions. MI tried to buy him back in the auction but PBKS were successful in securing his services for INR 5.25 crore. Leg-spinners are sought after the most in the shortest format of the game and Chahar’s variations certainly make him a potent bowler. 11. Arshdeep Singh Arshdeep Singh. (Photo Source: IPL/BCCI) Young pacer and local lad Arshdeep Singh was one of the two retentions made by the Punjab Kings ahead of the mega auctions. The 23-year-old has been one of the best discoveries in recent years in the IPL. His best-ever figures in the IPL came in a match against the Rajasthan Royals last year, when he took 5/32. The young pacer single-handedly demolished the RR side, making him the third-youngest player to have achieved a five-wicket haul in the IPL. The young left-arm pacer was retained for a price of INR 4.0 Crore before the auction. He is especially a death overs specialist and has bowled in crunch situations multiple times before in the cash-rich league.

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IPL 2022: Best Starting playing XI of Punjab Kings (PBKS) after mega auction

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