"The Punjab team looks strong because of players like Sam Curran" - Harbhajan Singh
Former Indian cricketer Harbhajan Singh recently lauded the Punjab Kings' (PBKS) stand-in skipper Sam Curran ahead of their IPL 2023 match against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on Friday, April 28.
Punjab have won four of their seven matches in the league stage. However, they have been jolted by regular skipper Shikhar Dhawan's shoulder injury, which ruled him out of the last three matches.
All-rounder Curran, who was the most expensive pick in the auction last year for a whopping sum of ₹18.5 crore, took over the charge of PBKS in Dhawan's absence.
Punjab defeated LSG and five-time IPL champions Mumbai Indians away from home under Curran. Speaking on Star Sports' Cricket Live, Harbhajan Singh said that players like Sam Curran make Punjab look like a formidable team.
"Sam Curran has handled the captaincy well in Shikhar's absence. Along with the ball, he also looked impressive with the bat. The Punjab team looks strong because of players like Sam Curran," Harbhajan said.
"Sanju Samson has matured as a captain" - Ravi Shastri
The Rajasthan Royals thumped MS Dhoni's Chennai Super Kings (CSK) by 32 runs to regain the top spot in the points table on Thursday, April 27.
Opener Yashasvi Jaiswal continued his terrific form, scoring 77 runs off 43 balls, with the help of eight boundaries and four sixes. Jaiswal's brilliant knock powered the Royals to 202 on a spin-assisting track in Jaipur.
RR captain Sanju Samson deployed three experienced spinners like Adam Zampa (3/22), Ravichandran Ashwin (2/35), and Yuzvendra Chahal (0/21) to successfully defend the huge score.
Heaping praise on Jaiswal's batting and Samson's leadership, former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan said:
"Yashasvi Jaiswal's batting and Sanju Samson's captaincy have taken RR to the top. Samson deserves all the praise. It is not easy to beat a strong team like CSK twice in a season, but Sanju achieved a 2-0 score against this side on the basis of tremendous preparation and excellent strategy."
Former Indian head coach Ravi Shastri also hailed the Rajasthan Royals skipper for showing maturity and rotating the spin bowlers in an adequate manner. Shastri said:
"Sanju Samson has matured as a captain. He uses his spinners very well. Only a good captain can play with three spinners and use them smartly."
Rajasthan Royals are the only team to defeat CSK twice this season so far. The Sanju Samson & Co. will play their next match against the Mumbai Indians (MI) on Sunday, April 30 in Mumbai.