Ex-India Test cricketer Deep Dasgupta was effusive in praise for Punjab Kings opening duo Shikhar Dhawan and Mayank Agarwal after their tremendous contribution to the win over Royal Challengers Bangalore in Indian Premier League 2022 on March 27.
Dhawan and Agarwal combined forces at the top of the order for a critical opening stand of 71 runs to lay a perfect foundation to PBKS’ quest to chase down the massive 206-run target at the DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai.
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While Dhawan, PBKS’ latest recruit, produced a knock of 43 off 29 balls, the team’s first-choice retention and newly appointed skipper Agarwal smashed the bowling for an important 32 off 24 at his end. The duo helped PBKS maximise the powerplay overs and were looking good for so much more when they lost their respective wickets.
Speaking to CricTracker, Dasgupta felt the way the two players Agarwal complimented each other augurs really well for the Punjab franchise with the long season ahead.
“Both the players have performed exceptionally well in past and franchise must be expecting a similar performance from both the batters.
Even in his low phase, Dhawan has maintained the strike rate of above 130, which is quite impressive and makes him the most valuable player. Also, Dhawan’s rich experience in the shortest game format only adds a feather in his cap.”
he said.
Dasgupta also opined that Agarwal is the right choice as skipper by the PBKS think-tank, including head coach Anil Kumble, following the departure of KL Rahul to Lucknow Super Giants.
The former cricketer stated that the Indian opener has earned the leadership tag after consistent performances in the previous seasons. Heading into his team’s first IPL 2022 fixture, Agarwal had an average of 34.20 across three seasons for PBKS at a strike-rate of 146.15.
Speaking of an excelling Indian opening batter, Dhawan isn’t one to be left behind. The experienced left-hander lost the race of retention in the Delhi Capitals camp but that was despite solid performances in the previous three seasons. Since IPL 2019, he has made 1,769 runs at an average of 39.31 and strike-rate of 134.93.
