Shikhar Dhawan replaces Mayank Agarwal as Punjab Kings captain | Cricket News

NEW DELHI: Veteran India opener Shikhar Dhawan will replace Mayank Agarwal as the Punjab Kings captain for the 2023 Indian Premier League.
The decision was made at the franchise’s board meeting on Wednesday.
The move was on expected lines after the 31-year-old from Karnataka failed to take the team to the IPL playoffs earlier this year.
Agarwal was subsequently made captain for the 2022 edition KL Rahul decided to move to Lucknow Super Giants. In addition to the team’s inconsistent run, Agarwal’s form also dipped as he scored 196 runs at an average of 16.33.

Last year, the franchise thought of making Dhawan the captain as well, but decided to go ahead with Agarwal.
“The board has decided to make Dhawan captain. He has all the experience both as a player and captain in the IPL and also performed well for the team in his first season last year,” an IPL source told PTI .
Punjab paid Rs 8.25 crore for Dhawan’s services in the mega auction earlier this year. The 36-year-old southpaw repaid the faith by scoring 460 runs in 14 matches at an average of 38.33 and a strike rate of 122.66.
The franchise is keen to retain Agarwal despite handing over the leadership duties to Dhawan. A decision on this will be taken soon once the deadline for the retention of players is set on November 15.
Although Dhawan has been a consistent performer in the IPL, he only plays in the 50-over format for India. He recently captained the second string India ODI team and will lead the team in New Zealand later this month. In the IPL, he has leadership experience with Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Punjab will also have a new head coach in Trevor Bayliss, who led England to the 2019 ODI World Cup title and KKR to two IPL titles in 2012 and 2014. Bayliss will be assisted by fellow Australian Brad Haddin.
The team owners’ expectations are high from the new coach and captain as the franchise looks for its first title. Punjab’s last appearance came way back in 2014. They had finished sixth in the previous four seasons.