Mullanpur: Punjab Kings batter Cooper Connolly says head coach Ricky Ponting told him to dominate while he looked forward to learning from captain Shreyas Iyer on his IPL debut against Gujarat Titans.
Connolly struck a match-winning 72 not out in his maiden IPL outing as Punjab Kings made a winning start to IPL 2026 here on Tuesday.
“I woke up in the morning with a little bit of nerves, which I was really happy about. I was really looking forward to getting out there and playing my part the best I can,” Connolly said. “Ricky Ponting just kept me calm and collected. He told me to play my game, go out there and dominate. It was a nice team performance. We were very strong with the ball and made things easier for ourselves. I was looking forward to spending time in the middle with Shreyas Iyer.”