Shashank Singh emerged as Punjab’s surprise hero in their 3-wicket win over GT in Ahmedabad on Thursday. Shashank was first considered a “accidental buy” for PBKS, but he has since shown to be a great match-winner.
Shashank Singh, who was initially thought to be an unintentional purchase for Punjab Kings in the IPL 2024 auction, has emerged as an unlikely hero for the team. In the group encounter against Gujarat in Ahmedabad, the 32-year-old delivered a match-winning knock under pressure. Shashank Singh single-handedly revived his team’s innings with his power hitting after a flurry of wickets dropped in the middle overs. Taking on every bowler, he went unbeaten at 61 off 29 balls, delivering an improbable victory for Punjab away from home. Shashank was joined by Ashutosh Sharma in the final three overs, and the two batted brilliantly together to bring Punjab to victory.
They needed 200 to win, and their lucky captain, Shikhar Dhawan, was out of the game early. After that, Jonny Bairstow and Prabhsimran Singh attacked the opposition, but neither player was able to score a significant amount. After losing one wicket in 9 overs and reaching 70/4 in 13 overs, Punjab was in serious trouble. Then, with Jitesh Sharma to accompany him, Shashank Singh began to fire; however, both the more experienced batter and Sharma left right as he was getting going. Then, Ashutosh Sharma emerged as the Impact Player, and his ability to maintain this substitution for an extended period of time proved to be the decisive element.
