Prabhsimran blitzed the RR bowling lineup in the initial stages of the game, scoring 60 runs off just 34 deliveries.
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Somewhere in Patiala, Punjab, one of the many households burst into joy and laughter, a tad bit more than the others as Punjab Kings (PBKS) defeated Rajasthan Royals (RR) in match 8 of the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL). Nathan Ellis was adjudged man of the match for his outstanding bowling performance which saw him bag four scalps for 30 runs.
Shikhar Dhawan was the highest run scorer for his team with a blistering and unbeaten 86 off just 56 deliveries which saw the Kings score 197 in their 20 overs. Here’s the thing, Shikhar was not the only one leading the charge with the bat. Actually, when the PBKS innings began, the skipper was the tame one as a 22-year-old boy from Patiala, by the name of Prabhsimran Singh, absolutely mauled the Rajasthan Royals.
Prabhsimran blitzed the RR bowling lineup in the initial stages of the game, scoring 60 runs off just 34 deliveries. His knock included seven boundaries and four maximums, recording an impressive strike rate of over 176. This has been long overdue, this performamce from Prabhsimran. Anyone who follows Punjab in Indian domestic cricket will know just how good a player the 22-year-old is. At the 2022-23 Syed Mushtaq Ai Trophy, Prabhsimran was the third highest run-scorer with 320 runs in nine innings, recording four half centuries and an average of 53.
Prabhsimran made it into the IPL with his cousin Anmolpreet Singh. The two Patiala boys were looked at as the next big things in Indian cricket. Anmolpreet was a huge part of the Indian u-19 team during his time and his younger brother was always looked at as a prodigy. The two brothers made it to the 2019 IPL when Prabhsimran was purchased by Kings XI Punjab for 4.8 crore and Anmolpreet got into Mumbai Indians for 80 lakh.
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“There were a couple of handball goal posts in our backyard, but they have long been replaced by cricket nets,” Anmolpreet’s father Satvinder Singh told Times of India in 2019. “I never liked cricket as a sport. But destiny has something else in store. What can I say? We are a very proud family.”
Prabhsimran’s version of things on that auction night in 2019 were, “We all were glued to the television set. I was confident that bhaiya (Anmolpreet) will get a contract. But I had never imagined that I would get into any of the franchises with such a hefty price tag,” revealed Prabhsimran.
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His father was ecstatic with what happened that night as well, stating that the celebrations went on till midnight. “When Anmol was picked by Mumbai Indians, we started celebrating with mithai (sweets), but once Prabhsimran’s bidding started, we just went mad. The entire family was doing bhangra. Our neighbours were dancing in front of our house. The celebrations went on till midnight,” said Prabhsimran’s father Surjit Singh as per CricBuzz.
Prabhsimran’s talent with the bat and behind the stumps was common knowledge in the Singh household. Yes, people were happy with how that auction turned out but nobody really was that surprised. Even Anmolpreet, who was a senior player to his brother, was not taken aback Prabhsimran’s price tag.
“He is a clean striker of the ball. In our school days, we gave such nightmares to the other teams. We were playing an inter-school tournament in Patiala and in one match one of our oppositions didn’t take the field. Their coach said they didn’t want to get embarrassed as the opposition bowlers were terrified,” recalled Anmolpreet. “I was expecting this question, but let me tell you one thing, saare paise ghar aa rahe hai (all the money is coming home),” he joked when asked about the difference between his and his brother’s price tag.
