Punjab Kings has officially declared Shreyas Iyes the captain for the 2025 edition of the IPL.
Shreyas Iyer led the Kolkata Knight Riders to victory in the last edition of the tournament. He was released by the franchise later in the year. In the mega IPL auction 2025, he was snatched up by Punjab Kings for INR 26.75 Crore. He was the second biggest buy in the league after Rishabh Pant at INR 27 Crore.
The 30-year-old has been at it in the domestic season for the last year or so. He has been proving a successful player in the domestic circuit and the IPL. He won four titles across formats. Apart from IPL, he has also captained the Mumbai team that won the 2024 Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy. He was also part of the Mumbai team in the Ranji Trophy and Irani Trophy.
Iyer is ecstatic to be given the role of a captain for Punjab Kings. He will be hoping to turn the fortunes of an IPL franchise that is yet to win a title. The best season of Punjab came in 2014 when they reached the final. Here is what Iyer said about the captaincy.
“I am honored that the team has reposed its faith in me. I am looking forward to working again with Coach Ponting. The team looks strong, with a great mix of potential and proven performers. I hope to repay the faith shown by the management to deliver our maiden title.”
Now, the captain-coach combo of Shreyas Iyer and Ricky Ponting is back in Punjab Kings. The last time they were together was in 2020 when they helped Delhi Capitals reach their first-ever IPL final. Ricky had some great things to say about him.
“Shreyas has a great mind for the game. His proven capabilities as captain will enable the team to deliver. I have enjoyed my time with Iyer in the past in IPL, and I look forward to working with him again. With his leadership and the talent in the squad, I am excited about the seasons ahead.”
Punjab Kings CEO also hoped that this combination of captain and coach will do wonders for the team.
“We had identified Shreyas as our captain and were delighted with the auction result. He has already proven himself to master the format, and his vision for the team aligns perfectly with our goals. With him and Ponting joining hands again, we are confident our team has a solid leadership group to guide us to our first title.”
