At the 'Star Nahi Far' event organised by Star Sports for IPL 2024, Punjab Kings captain Shikhar Dhawan shared exclusive insights, offering a glimpse into the team's preparations and aspirations for the upcoming IPL season. Reflecting on the remarkable journey of Rishabh Pant's recovery from a severe injury, Dhawan expressed his joy at witnessing Pant's return to action and highlighted the resilience and determination demonstrated by the young cricketer.
Additionally, Dhawan provided a first-hand account of the team's perspective on their new venue, Maharaja Yadavindra Singh Cricket Stadium, emphasizing the potential business advantages and the familiarity gained through previous domestic matches. Furthermore, Dhawan shed light on the squad's readiness and camaraderie, underscoring their eagerness to create a positive environment and approach the season with confidence and enjoyment.
Shikhar Dhawan spoke on Rishabh Pant’s journey back to fitness and how he has recovered from his injury, he said “I am very happy and excited to see Rishabh Pant back in action. He has survived such a fatal accident, all thanks to God. In this last one year, he has worked so hard and shown such positive intent. He was in such pain that he wasn’t even able to move or do anything for the first few months. Even for the toilet, he needed someone’s assistance. From that rough phase to now, he has shown a lot of patience, positivity, and tolerance, and it’s a huge thing. It surely gave him a lot of strength, and I am sure he is going to do wonders for himself and the country.”
Punjab Kings captain Shikhar Dhawan also spoke on the new venue which the Punjab Kings will play at this IPL - Maharaja Yadavindra Singh Cricket Stadium, he said “It's a new stadium with a lot of seats, so it's better for business. Secondly, it's a new pitch, but there have been domestic matches which have been played on it, so we have the experience that when we play, we get an idea of how the wicket is, how to play on it, what game plan should we use, what we should not use. That comes with experience, and if we make it a big thing in our head, it becomes big, and if not, it doesn't.”
He also spoke on the how the squad is raring to go this season, he said “The squad last year was good as well, and it was my first season as captain in the IPL. There was lots of learning, and I think this year Livingstone, Jitesh Sharma, Rabada, Rossouw, Sam Curran, Johnny Bairstow, myself, all of us are ready to go. Everyone is great, and we just want to create a good environment and play with confidence and enjoy ourselves.”
from IPL Live Score | IPL News, IPL 2024 Updates, Squads & Results - CricTracker