IPL 2022: Mayank Agarwal Is Not The Same Batter That He Was Last Season: Sanjay Manjrekar

After losing to Delhi Capitals on Monday, Punjab Kings’ chances of entering the playoffs are hanging by a thread. With the bat, Punjab Kings captain Mayank Agarwal was bowled for a two-ball duck by Axar Patel on another chaotic night for the batter in the ongoing season.

PBKS failed to chase down the 160-run, finishing 17 runs short. If PBKS is to have any hope of cracking the top four, they will have to rely on the kindness of other teams.

Move To Middle Order Has Not Worked For Mayank Agarwal

Mayank Agarwal, the PBKS captain, had another difficult night. The elegant right-hander had been moved down the order after a succession of bad performances, allowing England’s Jonny Bairstow to open the innings.

Agarwal’s troubles have remained despite his ability to play spin bowling proficiently.

Sanjay Manjrekar, a former Indian cricketer, believes Agarwal lacks confidence and is not the same hitter he was last season.

“It wasn’t an easy position for him to come and make a match or win the game against Delhi Capitals. But he has that kind of experience, he has the skills.

In fact, even at the Test level, when you see him hitting sixes, he does that against spinners. So, there’s no reason he shouldn’t be getting runs. But this is a guy who is short on confidence. He’s not the same batter that he was last season,” Manjrekar said on ESPNcricinfo.

Mayank Agarwal is carrying the burden of captaincy, according to former India spinner Piyush Chawla.

“I don’t know how much he has captained in the domestic cricket and all because captaincy is a huge responsibility. When the burden comes on your shoulder, it clearly shows on the field.

“We have seen that with Jaddu (Ravindra Jadeja) and now we are witnessing that here with Mayank Agarwal as well. He had to sacrifice his position because he was not getting runs at the top of the order,” said Chawla.

“He came lower down the order, he’s a very good player of spin bowling as well, but that confidence is not there at the moment. He just needs that one big inning — even like good 40 runs — is going to work for him. It’s not coming for him at the moment and that’s really disappointing to see,” he added.

Mayank Agarwal has 195 runs at an average of 17.73 in 11 innings in IPL 2022, with only one half-century.

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