IPL 2024: Punjab Kings rope in Sanjay Bangar as Head of Cricket Development: Former Team India all-rounder Sanjay Bangar has rejoined the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise Punjab Kings (PBKS) as the head of cricket development for the upcoming season of the league. Bangar will work alongside head coach Trever Bayliss to bring the team’s performance on track in the IPL 2024.
This will be Sanjay Bangar’s second association with Punjab Kings after having served them as the head coach between 2014 and 2016 when the team had the name of Kings XI Punjab.
With over a decade of coaching experience in two different IPL franchises and the Indian cricket team, Bangar’s initial set of challenges will include devising a strategy and nitpicking the best possible reinforcement for Punjab Kings during the IPL 2024 Auction, which is set to be held on December 19 in Dubai.
“It’s my privilege to be with the Punjab Kings again,” Sanjay Bangar said in a media release after being appointed head of cricket development in Punjab Kings. “We have a good core of players as evidenced by the fact that we have the lowest number of player releases this year. The challenge is to give the squad the best support possible during and after the season to make the team stronger and deliver success.”
The last coaching stint of Bangar with Punjab Kings had bitter-sweet memories. During his first year of taking up the head coach’s role in 2014 with Kings XI Punjab, the franchise managed to return as the runner-up to Kolkata Knight Riders. However, the next two seasons (2015 and 2016) remained pale for them as they returned with a wooden spoon in both of them.
Bangar has previously worked with Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) as well in two different capacities. Initially, Bangar was roped in as a batting consultant for the franchise in 2021, however, he was elevated to the role of head coach in the subsequent seasons. RCB did decently under his guidance, making it to playoffs on two out of three occasions.
Punjab Kings (PBKS) has released just five players ahead of the IPL 2024 Auction in Dubai. The likes of Mohit Rathee, Raj Bawa, Shahrukh Khan, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, and Baltej Singh form the released players list.
The franchise has a set core for the next edition of the league. They have struck with Shikhar Dhawan as captain for the next season. Below is the list of retained players by Punjab Kings:
PBKS Retained Players:
- Shikhar Dhawan (captain)
- Matthew Short
- Prabhsimran Singh (wk)
- Jitesh Sharma (wk)
- Sikandar Raza
- Rishi Dhawan
- Liam Livingstone
- Atharva Taide
- Arshdeep Singh
- Nathan Ellis
- Sam Curran
- Kagiso Rabada
- Harpreet Brar
- Rahul Chahar
- Harpreet Bhatia
- Vidwath Kaverappa
- Shivam Singh
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