The 15th edition of the Indian Premier League is just about a month away. But, two franchises, Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore are yet to announce their leader for IPL 2022. While Faf du Plessis might lead RCB, the Mohali-based PBKS have a tough decision to make. PBKS made a couple of retentions in the form of Mayank Agarwal and Arshdeep Singh, and the former was expected to be the obvious choice to fill KL Rahul’s shoes. However, after Shikhar Dhawan was bought by the franchise, the wind started blowing in the opposite direction. But after all the ifs and buts, Mayank Agarwal is all set to become PBKS’ next captain. The franchise is expected to make an official announcement soon.
Mayank Agarwal is all set to become PBKS’ next captain
As soon as the 14th edition of the IPL got over in October last year, some reports suggested that KL Rahul wants to part ways with Punjab Kings. Soon, the players retention process began and, as expected, PBKS did not retain Rahul. Instead, his childhood friend, Mayank Agarwal was retained by the franchise for 12 crores. Experts suggested that Mayank will carry the team forward but PBKS decided to wait till the auction. At the auction, PBKS went hard for Shikhar Dhawan and the southpaw was bought by the team for 8.25 crores.
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After the auction, the franchise owners indicated that they had found their leader in Shikhar Dhawan. But as the fans were waiting for an official announcement, a twist seems to have popped up. The owners have, now, decided to change their decision and Mayank has been locked as PBKS’ new captain.
Past Captaincy Records Of Mayank Agarwal And Shikhar Dhawan In IPL
While Shikhar has led an IPL franchise on ten occasions, Mayank led a team for the first time last year. In 10 matches as a captain, Shikhar Dhawan led his team to 4 victories while on 6 instances, his team faced defeat. In his only match as a captain, Mayank scored 99 runs and remained not out till the end. However, Mayank could not help his team secure a win as PBKS lost the match by 7 wickets.
| Player | Matches | Won | Lost | Tosses won |
| Shikhar Dhawan | 10 | 4 | 6 | 5/10 |
| Mayank Agarwal | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0/1 |
Verdict
Mayank has been associated with the Kings since 2018. With age on his side, he was always the front runner against Shikhar in the race towards the leadership role. But the best part is that both the players are team-men. They understand what their team, and the franchise owners, require from them. So, no grudges are expected to exist between Mayank and Shikhar.
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Punjab Kings had one of the best auction among the ten teams. The IPL is expected to start on the 26th of March in Maharashtra and the Kings will give their all to lift the title for the first time.
