Punjab Kings (PBKS) head coach Ricky Ponting has said that he wants to work with franchise captain Shreyas Iyer for IPL 2025. Describing the Indian batter as a great human being, he also added that Shreyas has already made an impact as a leader as well. He also led Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to victory in IPL 2024, and PBKS bought him for a whopping ₹26.75 crore, making him the second most expensive player in the history of the IPL as well.

At a media interaction, Ponting said (as quoted by PTI): “I was desperate to work with Shreyas again. We had a great working relationship at Delhi over a long period of time. He’s one of the best players that I’ve worked with.”He’s a great human being. He’s an IPL winning captain. You couldn’t ask for much more. He’s only joined the camp a couple of days ago. So he’s starting to make his mark on the team as a captain and as a leader. We’ve put a great squad together. As you know, captain-coach relationship in any team is vital. And I know that we’ve got a really good strong one here,” the former Aussie skipper added.

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However, Shreyas Iyer also praised Ponting and described his captaincy as a coach who supports everyone and does not believe in senior-junior culture as well.

“I’ve worked with him for almost three years in a franchise. And I know how he thinks about every individual on and off the field. He supports everyone. You see in some places there is a senior-junior culture. But when I worked with him for the first time, he made me feel like I’m a great player. And I can easily excel in this format. So, the confidence he gives is of a different level,” he concluded.