Are the pieces of the Kings jigsaw finally falling into place? Premium

Punjab Kings' journey from struggles to resurgence under Ricky Ponting's vision and young talent in IPL 2025.

Seventeen seasons. Two playoff appearances. One of only three franchises to participate in every edition of the Indian Premier League without tasting championship glory. There’s enough between the words in these sentences to bog a team and its fanbase down. But not if you are Punjab Kings.

The last time the side made the playoffs, it wasn’t even called Punjab Kings. It was Kings XI Punjab. Priyansh Arya was just 13. Prabhsimran Singh barely 14. Arshdeep Singh? He was planning a move to Canada. Shreyas Iyer hadn’t made his First Class debut. And Yuzvendra Chahal was a fresh-faced discovery.

However, the struggling outfit got a shot in the arm with a vow on March 19 this year. An oath from arguably one of the greatest cricketers and sharpest brains: Ricky Ponting.

“The overall vision for this team is to win the Indian Premier League. I told the guys on the very first day at the camp in Dharamshala (that) we were going to create and become the greatest Punjab Kings team ever. That’s the journey we’re on and that doesn’t happen overnight. You’ve got to create that,” Ponting proclaimed ahead of the season.

From name changes to jersey overhauls, squad rebuilds to coaching staff shifts, even transfer in ownership — change has been the only constant for Punjab Kings. It has been a franchise with passion, but one that always stumbled when the going got tough.

Ponting’s appointment on a four-year contract was one of a number of ‘big picture’ decisions the management made. The other was retaining just two players — the uncapped duo of Shashank Singh and Prabhsimran — and going into the mega auction with ₹110.50 crore to burn.

Within the first half hour of the exercise, Kings happily splurged 26.75 crore to land a proven captain in Shreyas, the man who led Kolkata Knight Riders to its third IPL crown in 2024.