Kings XI Punjab preview: Glenn Maxwell's team is loaded with power and could emerge as dark horses

The similarities that Kings XI Punjab have with their director of cricket, Virender Sehwag, is almost uncanny.

Armed with an endless battery of power hitters in their middle-order, the team can blow away opposition bowlers for fun on their day. If they fail to click, it should be no surprise to see them succumb to one defeat after another and suffer another premature exit from the tournament.

Despite the squad going through major surgery during the Indian Premier League auctions, perhaps stemming from their abject displays last season, expectations from the team have been quite low-key. As for their approach, it was the charismatic Sehwag who laid down the marker a few days ago, “We are not worried about victory or defeat. I will allow my players to play aggressive cricket,” the ‘Nawab of Najafgarh’ said.

It was a carefree, fluid approach that saw KXIP enjoy their best season – 2014, where they were beaten finalists. The following years saw the side’s form taper off because of the loss of key players, non-performances from local talent, and some reckless knee-jerk decisions with the leadership role.

While it is Punjab’s batting that will put bums to seats, how far they will progress will be ascertained by their bowling lineup, which was recently bolstered by the inclusion of Ishant Sharma for the injured Murali Vijay. It is an important season for out-of-favour internationals Mohit Sharma and Varun Aaron too.

However, it is the Rs 3 crore man, left-armer T Natarajan who is the cynosure of all eyes.

It is a given that the team will be modeled on new skipper Glenn Maxwell’s image: Unpredictable, brutal and stoppable when on song, but equally frustrating and bereft of ideas when things don’t go according to plan.

Old faces:

Glenn Maxwell

What could worry Punjab is that 28-year-old has had seasons to forget after his memorable exploits in the 2014 season. The 2015 season saw him fail to register even a half-century. However, a lot has changed for the Victorian over the past few months, which includes a way back in the Test team, which was capped off by slamming his maiden hundred. Over to Maxwell the captain to pull the strings now.

David Miller

The burly South African is entering his sixth season with Punjab. Be it his form with the bat and as skipper, Miller had a forgetful outing last year and finds himself in a desperate need to redeem himself. The winds of change have certainly been blowing in the right direction in recent times for the southpaw, who yet again established himself as one of the most destructive finishers in the game during South Africa’s recent 11-match winning streak in One-Day Internationals.

Wriddhiman Saha

The Bengal keeper enters his fourth season as a KXIP player and his key role during India’s excellent home Test season has seen expectations grow considerably. A doughy fighter, flexible with batting positions, and a class act behind the stumps, this season might see Saha play the role of dropping anchor, and could be moved up the order.

New Faces:

T Natarajan

Seventeen wickets in six games in Tamil Nadu Premier League proved to be enough evidence for KXIP to stump up Rs 3 crore for the Tamil Nadu pacer. The 25-year-old from Tamil Nadu could be a handful for the opposition batsmen in the death overs. Natarajan floored many a batsman with toe-crushing yorkers in the TNPL. Now, it boils down to how he can handle a big-money contract and the pressure of having the spotlight on him.

Darren Sammy

West Indies’ two-time World Cup winning skipper has gone off the boil somewhat after a memorable season with Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2013. Sammy failed to make an impact with Royal Challengers Bangalore too, featuring in just two games. Sammy’s leadership skills and his nous in Twenty20 cricket will come in handy for Maxwell, if the former plays.

Varun Aaron

Another player released by RCB who is in a desperate need of an image makeover. Just like his teammate Ishant Sharma, the India speed gun has gained an unwanted reputation of being an expensive bowler with a steep economy rate of 9.59 last season. Aaron though, has his task cut out as he will be fighting against fellow pacers Ishant Sharma, Mohit Sharma, Sandeep Sharma and New Zealander Matt Henry for a spot in the team.

Strengths:

Power-hitters. Apart from the names mentioned above, KXIP have Eoin Morgan, Marcus Stoinis, Martin Guptill and loyal servant Shaun Marsh in their ranks. Protea wizard Hashim Amla also has his task cut out to nail down a spot. Such is the strength in depth of the KXIP batters.

When on song, there is no reason why this team cannot get a score close to, or in excess of 200. Choosing the four international players wisely will be quite a task. If it pays off, KXIP may well repeat their feats from 2014.

Weaknesses:

Lack of quality spinners to support Axar Patel is a worry, considering the key role that the slower bowlers play in the middle-overs. Ishant and Aaron, as mentioned earlier, have gone for plenty and lacked control and Natarajan is by and large, an unknown quantity. If the pacers – who have everything to prove this season – fail as a unit, it will well and truly be curtains for the team. The same goes with Maxwell’s captaincy, which has found its fair share of skeptics.

Prediction:

As mentioned earlier, there is no saying what Punjab can do, almost mirroring Pakistan’s reputation in world cricket. Punjab had an excellent outing at the auctions and have bought wisely. They might just sneak into the qualifiers this time around.

X-Factor:

Maxwell and Miller share this title. Very few batsmen come close to causing the kind of mayhem the Australian-South African duo can in the space of a few overs.

Full squad:

Glenn Maxwell (captain), David Miller, Manan Vohra, Axar Patel, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Anureet Singh, Sandeep Sharma, Shaun Marsh, Wriddhiman Saha (wicketkeeper), Nikhil Naik, Mohit Sharma, Marcus Stoinis, KC Cariappa, Armaan Jaffer, Pardeep Sahu, Swapnil Singh, Hashim Amla, Varun Aaron, Eoin Morgan, Matt Henry, Rahul Tewatia, Martin Guptill, Darren Sammy, Rinku Singh, T Natarajan, Ishant Sharma.

Director of Cricket/Mentor: Virender Sehwag

Assistant Coach: Mithun Manhas

Batting Coach: J Arunkumar