With the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) just over a couple of weeks away, the Kings XI Punjab owner Mohit Burman has revealed that he is complete confidence that his team will give one of their best performances ever. The KXIP squad, which will be led by Ravichandran Ashwin who was bought at the auctions in January for ₹7.8 crore, will be the only franchise in the season to have a bowler as the skipper.

Speaking in an interview to Cricketnext, Burman expressed confidence in Ashwin, he said, “(There are) A few nerves, yes, but I am looking forward to what should be an exciting season. (Brad) Hodge and (Virender) Sehwag have made a consensual decision (on Ashwin as captain) and I totally agree with it. I feel this year you’re going to see one of our best performances ever.”

Also read: IPL Governing Council Changes The Venues For KXIP’s Home Matches

KXIP will be looking forward to getting to reach the playoffs of the tournament for the first time since 2014, will also be the only team to host matches in stadiums other than their home ground of Mohali. Talking about the team, Burman said, “The crowd turnout is not a problem at all because it is such a long tournament it involves so many matches, sometimes it becomes difficult to keep the momentum and the enthusiasm going. That’s why we will be playing some of our home games in Indore. Also, this has been done keeping in mind BCCI’s policy of taking the game to different parts of the country.”

The franchise, which has never lifted the coveted IPL trophy, will also feature major players like Chris Gayle, Karun Nair, KL Rahul, Aaron Finch, Yuvraj Singh, and Mayank Agarwal. Speaking of the franchise’s strategy during the auction, Burman admitted that they went with a different mindset this year.

Also read: Virender Sehwag Reveals His Expectations From The Big Names Of KXIP

The KXIP owner said, “Earlier we were a bit light in this department (Indian players) and were clever thinkers in terms of spending the money. But our buying strategy has changed to include more stars as well as include the youngsters and give the best possible XI to the coaches so that we can win the tournament.”

The 11th season of IPL will kickoff from April 7 with defending champions Mumbai Indians locking horns with Chennai Super Kings at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Punjab will face off against Delhi Daredevils in their first match of the season on April 8 at Feroz Shah Kotla Ground in New Delhi.