From Auction Blunder to Game-Changing Performer: The Story of Shashank Singh

(Shashank Singh during his innings against Gujarat Titans in IPL 2024)

Picture yourself in a gully cricket match where no team initially considered picking you. However, after finally being selected, you step onto the field and deliver a performance that secures victory for your team. How would you describe the emotions you'd experience in such a scenario? Such has been the case of Shashank Singh in the Indian Premier League 2024 where he gave a match-winning performance against Gujarat Titans. But there is a twist as during the IPL Auction 2024 when the name of Shashank Singh appeared, the owners of Punjab Kings got confused with the player number which resulted in them getting the wrong player. However, the owners later clarified the issue and hence the matter was cleared between both parties.

Early life and career of Shashank Singh

Being the son of the IPS officer Shailesh Singh, Shashank Singh was born in a family where everyone was following the path of studies. But he had a different career choice and hence he started following his heart which led him to make his debut for the Chhattisgarh team in the 2015–16 Vijay Hazare Trophy and it started a journey of full ups and downs for him. After announcing himself at the domestic stage, he finally got a chance to showcase his skills in the Indian Premier League as Delhi Capitals included him in the team for the 2017 IPL season for just 10 lakhs.

However, he failed to make his debut for the team in that season and was released by the team. In 2018, he was sold to Rajasthan Royals but again was benched throughout the season for the team. But in between, he made his Ranji Trophy debut for the Chhattisgarh team. For straight three seasons, he was unsold in the IPL and wasn’t a part of any team and then in 2022, Sunrisers Hyderabad finally included him in the team.

(Shashank Singh playing for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL 2022)

For the Sunrisers Hyderabad, his first match came against the Gujarat Titans where he finished the innings well for the team. In the last over of Lockie Ferguson, he smashed 3 consecutive sixes and gave the team an amazing total on the board. This was the first time the fans saw him live, but he failed to deliver according to the expectations in the upcoming matches. In the 10 matches played that year, Shashank Singh scored 69 runs with a strike rate of 146.81. After being released by the Sunrisers Hyderabad at the end of the 2023 season, Punjab Kings included him in the team for the 2024 season.

How Shashank Singh ended up with the Punjab Kings team

During the Auction of IPL 2024, all the teams had their shopping lists with them and the Punjab Kings team had the name of Shashank Singh on their list. During the accelerated round, Shashank’s name came up on the screen and it grabbed the attention of the Punjab Kings owners to which they made the bid. However, when the auctioneer, Mallika Sagar brought down the hammer, the Punjab Kings owner intervened and enquired whether it was player 236 or 237 as both of them had the same name, Shashank Singh, and the same base price of INR 20 Lakhs.

Coming to this, Ness Wadia and Preity Zinta were engaged in the talks with the officials present over here and this led to a big confusion. However, after a few minutes of discussions, it was finally revealed that the Punjab Kings had got the correct Shashank Singh and he was always on their list. The other player with the same name was a 19-year-old youngster who is yet to play his first match of the Indian Premier League. Even in a post on X, the Punjab Kings owners cleared the matter and said:

Punjab Kings would like to clarify that Shashank Singh was always on our target list. The confusion was due to 2 players of the same name being on the list. We are delighted to have him on board and see him contribute to our success. Two players of similar names on the IPL list created confusion. I am delighted to share that the right Shashank Singh has been onboarded. He has put out some noteworthy performances, and we're ready to unleash his talent,

https://x.com/PunjabKingsIPL/status/1737449448048042006

Considering the tweet of Punjab Kings, even the player Shashank Singh also made it clear that the owners have got in touch with him and he was the only one who was required by the team. Quoting the post of the official handle of Punjab Kings, he said “It’s All Cool … Thank you for Trusting on me!!!!”

The Match that Made Shashank Singh a Name

With all the drama in the auction, Shashank Singh was at the receiving end of numerous trolls and memes. However, he never took them seriously and started training positively for his stint with the Punjab Kings and eagerly waited for his chance in the Indian Premier League season 2024. In the 17th match of the season, the Punjab Kings were playing against the Gujarat Titans at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad.

(Shashank Singh and Ashutosh Sharma during their 43 runs partnership)

While batting first, Gujarat Titans registered a total of 199 runs with the loss of 4 wickets and it was the innings of Shubman Gill where he got 89 runs in just 48 balls of the innings. Kagiso Rabada proved to be the key wicket-taker by getting 2 scalps in the 4 overs bowled. It looked like a tough target for the Punjab Kings as with the bigger boundaries and the pitch being a bit slow, the batters had to play their best game in the run chase.

GT vs PBKS, 17th Match at Ahmedabad, IPL, Apr 04 2024
Gujarat Titans	Sunrisers Hyderabad
199/4 (20.0 overs)	200/7 (19.5 overs)
Shubman Gill 89* (48)	Shashank Singh 61* (29)
Kagiso Rabada 2/44 (4 overs)	Noor Ahmad 2/32 (4 overs)
Punjab Kings won by 3 wickets

Coming to the Punjab Kings batting, they lost Shikhar Dhawan early and after that, the quick wickets of Jonny Bairstow along with Prabhsimran Singh further declined their chances in the match. With 111-5 in 12.2 overs, Punjab Kings were almost out of the chase and this is where Shashank Singh started hitting well with Jitesh Sharma on the crease. However, after hitting two consecutive sixes against Rashid Khan, Jitesh was caught out and it brought Ashutosh Sharma to the crease.

In the last 3 overs, Punjab Kings required 41 runs and Ashutosh managed to get 16 of that over by hitting 3 fours to Azmatullah Omarzai. The 19th over was bowled by Mohit Sharma and both the batters got 18 runs as despite getting the slower balls, Shashank Singh managed to get a six off the last ball of the over. With just 7 needed of the last over, the ball was in the Punjab Kings court but a first ball wicket of Ashutosh Sharma got the Gujarat Titans back in the game.

(Shashank Singh celebrating after winning the match against Gujarat Titans)

However, Shashank Singh kept his cool and with 5 required of 3 balls, he got a boundary which made sure that Punjab wouldn’t lose now. Then a single from leg-bye gave Punjab Kings a win by 3 wickets and a ball remaining. Shashank Singh finished with 61 runs in just 29 balls and was declared the Man of the Match for his sublime innings.