In a piece of great news for the Punjab Kings, English all-rounder Liam Livingstone has joined the squad ahead of their clash against Gujarat Titans. The big-hitting all-rounder has been out of action since December 2022 due to a knee injury. Livingstone shared an update on the Lancashire Cricket Twitter account that he had taken injections last week and that they had done the trick for him.
PBKS's middle order crumbled against SRH in their previous game, as none of the batters failed to reach 25. Without Shikhar Dhawan, PBKS would have been shot below 100. His unbeaten 99 helped them get to a total of 143 runs. PBKS's middle order will look strong with Livingstone back. Because of his aggressive batting style, the right-hand batter can win matches on his own.
The English batter was a revelation in the IPL 2022, scoring 437 runs in 14 games. Livingstone also hit 34 sixes, proving he is the best six-hitter in the world. Aside from his batting ability, the right-hand batter is also a useful option with his spin bowling.
Sikandar Raza is likely to be dropped to make room for Livingstone in the playing XI after failing to get going with bat and ball in hand. Raza has only scored 22 runs in three games and has only taken one wicket. Livingstone is expected to play at number five, a position he excelled at for PBKS during the IPL 2022 season. Shikhar Dhawan's team has played three games against SRH, winning two and losing one.
Punjab Kings in Indian Premier League 2023
The Men in Red and Gold are sixth in the points table after winning two of their three games. They've had some solid performances this season, led by captain Shikhar Dhawan. They won the high-scoring games against Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals but lost against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
They will play their next game against the defending champions Gujarat Titans at the Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali on the 13th of April.
Here is how Twitter reacted
100m sixes loading.............
— Abhishek (@A__B__H__I___) April 11, 2023
Psych 🔥🔥🔥🔥 gabbar * livinstone * rajapaksha 🔥🔥🔥
— K.L (@kingfisher525) April 11, 2023
Gujarat ko hara diyo bhai
— Troll Cricket (@ExtraCover07) April 11, 2023
Now the real six hitting contests starts🔥🔥🥳🥳❣️❣️
— Dubbaka Sai vardhan (@DubbakaVardhan) April 11, 2023
Hope you don't disappoint me @liaml4893
No way this guy and rabada coming in 🤯
— Kowshik🇮🇳 (@Kowshik43211725) April 12, 2023
— Stan for kalyan (@krish_na_here) April 11, 2023
Monster pic.twitter.com/31OF2396Eg
— KS (@twenty_four_k) April 11, 2023
We are here to win it this year! COME ON PUNJAB🦁 Best death bowling in the tournament and now that Liam has joined us, one of the best batting line ups in the tournament.
— Aaron Singh (@Aaron_3107) April 11, 2023
Fit hai khelne ke liye ya nhi ispe depend karta hain. Short ko 1 match aur dena chahiye
— Abhinav singh (@Abhinav_tmk) April 12, 2023
they have a really strong team, just need the secondary bowlers + Shahrukh to click. Otherwise the batting and pacers are damn good.
— AZ (@azkhawaja1) April 11, 2023