New Delhi, Mar 23 (PTI) Head coach Ricky Ponting has urged Punjab Kings players to be physically, technically and mentally sharp, while drawing confidence from their strong showing last season.
Punjab Kings had reached the IPL final last year after a decade, but a maiden title eluded them as Royal Challengers Bengaluru beat them in the summit clash.
The team led by Shreyas Iyer showed a dominating style of play which would make Punjab Kings one of the teams to beat in the IPL this year.
“This is training, this is preparation. This is about getting ourselves physically, technically and mentally right for that first game on the 31st,” Ponting was quoted as saying in a release by the franchise.
Punjab Kings will take on Gujarat Titans in their season-opener at Mullanpur on March 31.
“I want you to think back and think what you brought to this team last year and that made us a good team,” Ponting said.
The legendary Australian also urged his players not to get bogged down by failures as long as they stick to the game plan.
“We all make mistakes. That’s fine. I will make mistakes on the way through this. You will all make mistakes, you’ll drop a catch, you’ll play bad shots, you’ll bowl a bad over,” he said.
“But as long as you are sticking to what you know and what your game plan is, if you make a mistake, doing that in my eyes is not a mistake. It’s just what happens in the game, it’s a part of the game,” Ponting added. PTI DDV AM AM
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