On Sunday, January 12, Bollywood superstar Salman Khan officially announced that star middle-order batsman Shreyas Iyer will lead the Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the Indian Premier League 2025 (IPL 2025).
The official announcement of Shreyas Iyer taking over the management of Punjab Kings was made on Bigg Boss 18 Weekend Ka Vaar with few more Punjab Kings players.
Also read: BCCI unhappy with Gautam Gambhir’s support staff is likely to take major action soon
Shreyas Iyer lands on the sets of Bigg Boss 18 along with Yuzvendra Chahal and Shashank Singh
Shreyas Iyer along with star leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal and explosive batsman Shashank Singh joined Salman Khan for Bigg Boss 18 Weekend Ka Vaar which aired on January 12.
Bigg Boss is a popular Indian reality TV franchise based on the Dutch reality show Big Brother. It is produced by Endemol Shine India and is currently in its eighteenth season, hosted by Salman Khan for the fifteenth time.
Shreyas Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal and Shashank Singh were spotted having fun with Salman Khan on stage and they danced together to Bollywood tunes before Iyer was officially announced as the new captain of Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League.
The trio of PBKS cricketers then entered the Bigg Boss house and a mini-cricket match was played between Team Shreyas and Team Yuzi. Iyer’s team consists of Rajat Dalal and Vivian Dsena, while Karan Veer Mehra joins Shashank Singh in Yuzvendra Chahal’s team.
Weekend Ka Vaar will be even more fun as Gharwale plays a game of cricket with Punjab Kings players.
Look #BigBoss18 Weekend Saturdays and Sundays at 9.30pm @ColorsTV gold #JioCinema para. pic.twitter.com/ZY1e1RwxAL
— JioCinema (@JioCinema) January 12, 2025
Shreyas Iyer, Yuzvendra Chahal and Shashank Singh are the key players of Punjab Kings
Iyer, Chahal and Shashank are key players for PBKS and the trio’s performance will determine how successful the franchise will be in IPL 2025.
Ahead of the mega auction, the franchise retained explosive batsman Shashank Singh and young wicketkeeper-batsman Prabhsimran Singh for Rs 5.5 crore for Rs 4 crore.
Over the years, PBKS has struggled to find a good captain and has had to make many changes in its leadership team. To solve this problem this time, they went into the auction with a clear mind to rope in a renowned captain and managed to get Shreyas Iyer.
Released by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) after leading them to the title win in IPL 2024, Iyer was bought by Punjab Kings for INR 26.75 crore as they broke their bank for him.
PBKS also went all out for Yuzvendra Chahal in the auction and bought him for INR 18 crore, making him the most expensive spinner in the history of the league.
Punjab Kings are trying to win the IPL under Shreyas Iyer and Ricky Ponting
Punjab Kings have been one of the biggest underachievers in the history of the Indian Premier League. Since the first edition of the IPL, the Punjab-based franchise has experienced a mix of highs and lows, with their best performance coming in 2014 when they finished second.
They have been very conflicted over the years, and frequent splits and changes have made things worse for them. However, with Ricky Ponting as head coach and Iyer as captain at the helm, PBKS would be hoping for a big turnaround and end their trophy drought in IPL 2025.
Notably, they entered the mega auction with the biggest purse of Rs 110.5 crore and managed to field a balanced line-up with the likes of Arshdeep Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Glenn Maxwell, Nehal Wadhera and many others.
 in the Indian Premier League 2025 (IPL 2025).){kind=link}