Punjab Kings (PBKS) batter Shikhar Dhawan on Sunday (17th April) revealed that regular captain Mayank Agarwal will be back for their next game of the ongoing IPL 2022. 

Coming to the match against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), PBKS suffered a major blow as skipper Agarwal was ruled out due to an injury. The right-hander sustained a toe injury during the net session and in his absence, Dhawan was given the responsibility to lead the side. 

However, his outing as a skipper wasn’t fruitful as PBKS suffered a 7-wicket loss at the hands of SRH. Agarwal’s absence was quite visible as their top-order failed to deliver and was back in the hut for just 48 runs. 

Read Also: Cricket fraternity reacts as SRH win their fourth match in a row; defeat PBKS by 7 wickets

Liam Livingstone was a lone warrior for his side as he scored 60 runs in 33 balls to help his side post a fighting total of 151 runs on the board. The Kane Williamson-led side comfortably chased the target as Aiden Markram (41*) and Nicholas Pooran (35*) powered their team to their fourth consecutive win of the season. 

Speaking at the post-match presentation, Shikhar Dhawan said that regular skipper Mayank Agarwal is fit and will be back for the next game against Delhi Capitals (DC). 

He also talked about the defeat his side suffered against SRH. He admitted that they were 30-40 runs short, which put them behind in the game. He termed early wickets as the reason behind their loss. 

“Mayank is better and he should be ready to be back. 

“We were 30-40 runs short and lost too many early wickets which put us behind the game. The early wickets meant we had to hold wickets and that's where we had to mould our game. There was a middle order recovery but the early wickets cost us," Shikhar Dhawan said. 

PBKS will next face Delhi Capitals on Wednesday (20th April) at MCA Stadium in Pune. 

(PTI inputs)