Punjab Kings have been one of the five teams to have participated in all 15 seasons of the Indian Premier League. However, the Kings have never won the championship. They made it to the final in 2014, but after that, they have never qualified for the playoffs.
In IPL 2022, Punjab started off on a promising note but eventually finished sixth on the points table. Playing under the captaincy of Mayank Agarwal, Punjab showed an aggressive intent like England. However, their inconsistency led to their early exit from the tournament.
Ahead of IPL 2023, Punjab Kings may look to release some of their expensive picks and try to work on their weak areas.
1. Punjab Kings may release Shahrukh Khan
PBKS signed Shahrukh Khan for a massive 9 crore at the mega auction. While Khan has been phenomenal in domestic cricket, he could not make much of an impact while playing for PBKS. He played eight games for the team, scoring 117 runs at a strike rate of 108.33.
2. Punjab Kings may not retain Odean Smith
Caribbean all-rounder Odean Smith received a 6 crore contract from the Punjab Kings. He won the Player of the Match award in the first game but let the team down with his performance in the next few games. Subsequently, he lost his place in the playing XI and might be released now.
3. Vaibhav Arora
PBKS raised many eyebrows when they spent 2 crore to sign uncapped fast bowler Vaibhav Arora. Vaibhav played five matches for PBKS, picking up three wickets at an economy rate of 9.19. Punjab may look to release him and buy him back at a cheaper price.
4. Nathan Ellis
Another fast bowler to feature on the list is Nathan Ellis. The right-arm fast bowler took three wickets, but his economy rate was 9.16. Kings could free up an overseas spot by releasing Ellis and target someone like Ben Stokes, Sam Curran or Mitchell Starc at the 2023 auction.
