Punjab Kings Bring in This Surprising Name as Ricky Ponting Misses the Auction

ByAnupam Pandey,SportsCafe Editor

Today at 4:49 PM

Punjab Kings are now preparing themselves for the IPL auction. But just before the same, the team has received unfortunate news. Their Head Coach, Ricky Ponting, won't be available for the auction, as he serves as a commentator in the Ashes.

Punjab Kings have finally made some name in the IPL, with their performances in the last season. Although they fell just short to win the final match against RCB, they are getting ready for the next season. For this, the team has already made its retentions and is now focused to bring the best from the auction.

The IPL auction is scheduled to take place on 16 December, and it clashes with The Ashes. This has put Punjab Kings in a little bit of trouble. Their Head Coach, Ricky Ponting, is serving as a commentator in this test series and won't be available in the auction. So, the team has decided to place their skipper, Shreyas Iyer, in his place.

1. Ponting Misses, Iyer Joins

Ricky Ponting is currently present in Australia, where The Ashes 2025/26 is also being played. While he is not linked with England or Australia related to their coaching staff, Ponting is present for the series as a commentator. Along with that, it should be noted that he will be serving his commentary stint at the time when the auction is set to take place.

This has left Ponting with no other choice than missing out the auction. It is among the few instances where the Head Coach of the team is not being available for the auction. But Punjab Kings have some great backups in his place, as Shreyas Iyer will be present at the auction table in Abu Dhabi.

Without Ricky Ponting, Shreyas Iyer will also have to make some tough decisions. But being the team's captain, he will be eager to fill up the squad with the best players possible. Also, it should be noted that Shreyas Iyer is not the only captain to be present at the auction table. This has been done by Rishabh Pant also for the LSG in the last edition of the tournament.

2. Punjab Kings Auction Purse

Ahead of the IPL auction, every team had to submit their list of retained players. So, Punjab Kings went on to retain 21 players from their previous squad, which led to the releases of the remaining stars. While some names were expected to be released by the team, the others also came in as a surprise exclusion.

The team has released players such as Josh Inglis, Glenn Maxwell, Aaron Hardie, Kuldeep Sen, and Pravin Dubey. It can be noted that three out of the five releases were of the overseas players. Punjab Kings now have a purse of 11.50 crore ready with them for the auction. Along with that, the team also holds the capacity to get two overseas players to their line-up.

3. Iyer’s Injury and Return

With Shreyas Iyer being reported to be available for the IPL auction, fans are now excited. This will be for the very first time since the India tour of Australia, they will be able to watch Iyer on television. Shreyas Iyer suffered with an injury in the second ODI of the series, when he was running backwards to take a catch but fell awkwardly to the ground.

This injury had affected his spleen, and he also suffered from internal bleeding. Fortunately, he was treated well by the doctors in Sydney, and is now doing well. But he had spent a few days admitted in the ICU, and since he is now discharged, he is advised to stay out of action for a while.

As Shreyas Iyer remains out of action, he can also participate in the IPL auction. With Iyer present at the auction table, fans will be excited to see the moves being made by Punjab Kings at the same. Iyer is also expected to return to international cricket in January with the New Zealand tour of India. But his availability will still be subject to the clearance from the BCCI CoE.

4. Punjab Kings in IPL 2025

Punjab Kings had a tremendous run in IPL 2025, under the captaincy of Shreyas Iyer. It was also for the first time in a long time that the duo of Ricky Ponting and Shreyas Iyer was seen. This duo helped Punjab Kings to break their 11 season wait to reach the playoffs of any IPL season.

This time, the team was able to reach the playoffs and eventually defeated the five time IPL champions Mumbai Indians to reach the finals. But they fell short by a few runs to defeat Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the final match, which makes them wait more to get their first title.