Punjab Kings (formerly Kings XI Punjab) will be seeking a return to finals contention after a three-year drought from the IPL‘s postseason.
In this year’s IPL Auction, team management has gone for consistent performers. Mayank Agarwal, Lokesh Rahul and Aaron Finch are players signed by the franchise that have done well in recent times. The franchise hopes they provide leadership after coming from successful backgrounds.
After six seasons in the competition, Kings played in its first finals campaign in 2014, where they managed to make the Grand Final against Kolkata Knight Riders. Since that losing final, Punjab Kings has plunged back down the ladder. Can they climb again in 2018?
Best bookmakers for Punjab Kings odds
About Punjab Kings
| Established | 2008 |
|---|---|
| Home ground | Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali |
| Coach | Brad Hodge |
| Captain | Ravichandran Ashwin |
| IPL titles | 0 |
Punjab Kings IPL fixture
| Opponent | Date | Venue | Time (local) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Delhi Daredevils | Sunday, April 8th | IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali | 4pm IST |
| Royal Challengers Bangalore | Friday, April 13th | M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru | 8pm IST |
| Chennai Super Kings | Sunday, April 15th | IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali | 8pm IST |
| Sunrisers Hyderabad | Thursday, April 19th | IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali | 8pm IST |
| Kolkata Knight Riders | Saturday, April 21st | Eden Gardens, Kolkata | 4pm IST |
| Delhi Daredevils | Monday, April 23rd | Feroz Shah Kotla Ground, Delhi | 8pm IST |
| Sunrisers Hyderabad | Thursday, April 26th | Rajiv Gandhi Intl. Cricket Stadium, Hyderabad | 8pm IST |
| Mumbai Indians | Friday, May 4th | Holkar Cricket Stadium, Indore | 8pm IST |
| Rajasthan Royals | Sunday, May 6th | Holkar Cricket Stadium, Indore | 8pm IST |
| Rajasthan Royals | Tuesday, May 8th | Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur | 8pm IST |
| Kolkata Knight Riders | Saturday, May 12th | Holkar Cricket Stadium, Indore | 4pm IST |
| Royal Challengers Bangalore | Monday, May 14th | Holkar Cricket Stadium, Indore | 8pm IST |
| Mumbai Indians | Wednesday, May 16th | Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai | 8pm IST |
| Chennai Super Kings | Sunday, May 20th | M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai | 8pm IST |
How will Punjab Kings go in 2018?
Left-arm spinner Axar Patel was the only player to be retained by Kings XI Punjab for the upcoming IPL season. The franchise made a lot of moves in terms of signing players like David Miller, Ravichandran Ashwin, Marcus Stoinis and Yuvraj Singh for this year’s competition. West Indian veteran and T20 star Chris Gayle was also picked up after being passed on by the rest of the competition. Lokesh Rahul turned out to be Kings XI’s biggest acquisition, bought for Rs 11 crore during 2018 IPL Auction.
Ravichandran Ashwin has been named the captain of the franchise for the coming season. The off-spinner will be keen to perform well in this year’s competition after having a poor run with the ball last season. Kings XI’s batting lineup contains a lot of emerging players such as Mayank Agarwal, Karun Nair, and Lokesh Rahul will be determined to do well in this year’s competition. Agarwal has been in tremendous form at the domestic competition and will be keen to replicate that in the Indian Premier League. Lokesh Rahul will be keen do well for Kings XI after being picked up for big price in the IPL Auction held in January.
David Miller is an explosive player in the middle order and would need to do the bulk of the scoring for the side. The left-handed batsman has enjoyed a decent run with the bat in the T20 format and would be keen to continue the rich vein of form in the coming season.
Brad Hodge has been named the Head Coach for Kings XI Punjab. The former Australian batsman will definitely bring a lot to the franchise in terms of the experience, having played in various T20 Leagues around the world. He has been a part of various successful teams in the past and exactly knows what to do in order turn things around for Kings XI Punjab in the upcoming edition of Indian Premier League.
Axar Patel and Marcus Stoinis are two genuine all-rounders in the setup for the coming season. Stoinis has been in scintillating form with the bat and will need to do more with the ball. Mohit Sharma and Barindar Sran are experienced options in the bowling department for the franchise. The overseas signings of Andrew Tye, Ben Dwarshuis, and Mujeeb Zadran will add much needed potency to the bowling attack.
Ravichandran Ashwin will have to deliver the goods with the ball if Kings XI Punjab aims to become serious challengers for the crown in 2018 Indian Premier League.
Kings XI Punjab Futures Betting
Kings XI Punjab will have to play their best cricket as they are still dubbed as outsiders to win the league. At William Hill, Kings XI Punjab is positioned at +900 to win the title this season.
Tips for betting on Kings XI Punjab
Kings XI Punjab have made wholesale changes in the batting and bowling department after doing well in the last couple of years. We shall make our prediction for top batsman and bowler for Kings XI Punjab for the coming season.
- Most wickets betting: Australia’s Andrew Tye will be crucial for Kings XI as he has variations in his bowling to outfox opposition players. Tye was fabulous in his first season and finished with 12 wickets in 6 games at an economy of 6.71. He also took his maiden five-wicket haul in the competition for Gujarat Lions. Andrew Tye will certainly be a handful in conditions that offer something for the bowlers.
- Most runs betting: Lokesh Rahul will definitely be keen to produce big runs for Kings XI Punjab. The opener has done well in the Indian Premier League and would certainly be keen to go one better this around. Rahul has produced scintillating performance with the bat in previous IPL seasons and would certainly relish the chance of batting with Chris Gayle at the top of the innings.
Kings XI Punjab likely best XI
- Chris Gayle
- Lokesh Rahul
- Karun Nair
- Mayank Agarwal
- Yuvraj Singh
- David Miller
- Marcus Stoinis
- Andrew Tye
- Ravichandran Ashwin
- Axar Patel
- Mohit Sharma.
