Shreyas Iyer was Punjab Kings' ‘first and only choice for captaincy’; whole auction 'revolved around him'

Punjab Kings seek a new era in the IPL as owner Preity Zinta hunts for a first title, with fresh captain Shreyas Iyer leading the charge for the team in IPL 2025. It has been a strong start to this campaign for Punjab Kings thus far, very much alive in the playoff hunt as they sit on 11 points just outside the playoff zone.

PBKS received Shreyas Iyer’s services for INR 26.75 crore in the auction, shelling out a premium fee for the 2024 IPL-winning captain, getting his experience as a captain along with his quality as a batter. With Shreyas starring for PBKS with some sparkling performances thus far, Preity Zinta was full of praises for the new face of her franchise.

Writing on social media platform X, Zinta responded during a Q&A session with her followers to questions about how she is finding working with Shreyas.

“Shreyas is a very down to earth guy and an amazing captain,” she wrote. “Very tactical and aggressive in his approach as a player, but the sweetest and the most soft-spoken guy.”

Iyer is the only player in the history of the IPL to have captained two different franchises to the final, and will this year try to become the only captain to have won the IPL title with two different franchises as well. After his development at Delhi Capitals and coming-of-age with Kolkata Knight Riders, Iyer is eyeing up becoming a true superstar of Indian cricket with PBKS.

PBKS auction strategy was always Mission Shreyas

Further, Zinta revealed that the plan was to get Iyer to the franchise all along ahead of the auction, explaining the record fee they shelled out for him at the time. With Iyer having worked with new PBKS coach Ricky Ponting in the past at DC, many expected a reunion, with PBKS’ rebuild beginning with their captain.

“We are very happy that he is leading Punjab Kings & happier we could get him in the auction as he was our first & only choice for captaincy, therefore, the whole auction revolved around him for us as a team,” explained Zinta.

So far, Shreyas has lived up to expectations with one of his best IPL seasons with bat thus far, with 288 runs in nine matches at a strike-rate of 182, head and shoulders above what his strike-rate has typically been through his IPL career.

The first goal for Shreyas and Preity Zinta will be to take PBKS to a first playoff appearance in more than a decade, with the focus now on delivering positive results through the business end of the tournament.