Punjab Kings batter Nehal Wadhera has revealed he was surprised to be named in the Playing 11 against Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL 2025.
The 24-year-old produced 43* runs off 25 deliveries which resulted in the 8-wicket victory at Lucknow. After the match, he claimed that he didn’t know he was going to play until moments before the game.
“I didn’t know I would be playing,” he said in the post-match press conference. The top-order batter added that he only had one kit for the match.
“I only brought one kit because I was sure I wouldn’t be in the XI. Normally, I carry two–one for batting and another for fielding. I even came in full sleeves,” Nehal Wadhera said.
Wadhera’s debut proved to be notable one where he anchored team’s innings along with PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer.
“Sometimes, things work in your favour,” Wadhera said.
“If I had known earlier, I might have overthought it…this was one of those days when I was lucky that I did not know that I would be playing, and it turned out to be lucky for me,” the young batter added.
The first hint of Wadhera’s possibility of featuring in the playing 11 came during the warmup. PBKS head coach Ricky Ponting approached him and said he would be playing if PBKS bowled first.
“Ricky came up to me and said, ‘If we bowl first, you’ll be in the eleven,’” he recalled. “I was a bit surprised and kept thinking, ‘How can I be in the XI just because we’re bowling first?’ I thought maybe he made a mistake…Once the playing XI was announced, I realized I was in,” he concluded.
Punjab Kings completed the chase with 3.4 overs remaining where Prabhsimran Singh was awarded the Player of the Match for 34-ball 69.
They will take on Rajasthan Royals on April 05 at Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium.
