Shashank Singh reveals inside details of how Shreyas Iyer-Ricky Ponting deal with Punjab Kings players
Published - 27 May 2025, 10:48 AM | Updated - 27 May 2025, 12:33 PM
Punjab Kings (PBKS) batter Shashank Singh hailed his skipper Shreyas Iyer and head coach Ricky Ponting to change the culture of Punjab’s team, and as a result, PBKS finished in the top 2 spot after 11 years.
PBKS made a splendid comeback in the IPL as they qualified for the playoffs after a decade and also secured the first position in the points table.
Shashank Singh lauds Iyer-Ponting
Shashank Singh opened up about how Ponting and Iyer cleared their intentions from the first day of the season, as they will treat every member of the Punjab team equally, and the respect will be shared equally, despite the seniority level between all members.
“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,” said Shashank at the post-match press conference in Jaipur.
Shashank also stated that Ponting and Iyer respected equally Yuzvendra Chahal and the bus driver. PBKS batter is not comparing Chahal with a driver, but he is trying to share the team’s environment.
“They have shown the same respect to Yuzvendra Chahal and to our bus driver, which says a lot about the team,” Shashank added.
Shashank believed that the arrival of Iyer and Ponting transformed the team culture and changed the mindset of all the players. He was one of the players of Punjab, who was in the squad of previous seasons when Punjab was not performing well.
“He 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 said.
Shreyas Iyer- Ricky Ponting reunion
It is not the first time that Shreyas Iyer and Ricky Ponting have revolutionized any IPL franchise; they have also done the same thing before in the IPL.
Shreyas Iyer and Ponting have worked together in the Delhi Capitals and led Delhi’s side to their first-ever IPL final in 2020. The success of Iyer under Ponting was the main reason why Ponting wanted to have Iyer in his new franchise.
Shreyas Iyer and Ricky Ponting’s classic duo
Punjab bought Shreyas Iyer in the IPL mega auction and handed him the captaincy. However, the rebuilding phase started before the mega auction, when PBKS appointed Ricky Ponting as the head coach before the IPL 2025 season.
Ponting was pretty clear to pick Iyer in the mega auction, and the PBKS management went all guns blazing for Iyer in the auction and bought him for 26.75 as he became the second most expensive player in IPL history.
The coach-skipper duo has found success in the first season for Punjab Kings too. They have now secured a spot in the top 2 positions in the IPL points table. Iyer and Ponting led PBKS to their first playoff in the last 11 years.
Read also: IPL Points Table, Orange Cap, Purple Cap After PBKS vs MI, Match 69 - IPL 2025
