'It Favours Fast Bowlers,' Punjab Kings Coach James Hopes Predicts More Fast Bowling Action In Dharamshala

Dharamshala: Punjab Kings are all set to play their first TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) match at their second home ground, HPCA Cricket Stadium, Dharamshala, against Delhi Capitals on Monday. Ahead of the crucial encounter, the Kings’ fast bowling coach, James Hopes, addressed the media regarding the team’s strategy, the shift to the new home ground, and maintaining a positive outlook despite recent setbacks.

Reflecting on the team's recent performance and the challenges faced, Hopes identified specific areas for improvement while noting that setbacks are natural over the course of a two-month tournament.

“We let ourselves down in the last game with our catching. If we take those catches, we could probably restrict them to a little bit more than 220 and come out on top in that game. It's a little bit of a hiccup, but I think any team that thinks they're going to go through this tournament and just sail for two months all the way through and not lose a game of cricket is kidding themselves. Our tournament for us starts now, I think,” the coach said.

Discussing the tactical advantage of the venue, Hopes noted, “It does favour the fast bowlers historically just because there's a little bit of sideways movement and a little bit more bounce than some of the other venues that we play on. So the guys are excited about tomorrow night. We have been playing on some of the pitches which we think have been pretty flat, so I think they're excited to see the ball swing around a little bit and bounce a little bit.”

Addressing questions regarding the potential bowling lineup for Monday’s game, Hopes stated, “I think with Harpreet, whenever he gets a game, he always performs. He hasn't let us down at all in the last couple of years. With Azmatullah back now from Afghanistan, we have an opportunity to maybe switch things up a little bit and still carry all our fast bowling and play two spinners, but we'll sit down and talk about that tonight.”

The Fast Bowling Coach also lauded the leadership of Ricky Ponting and Shreyas Iyer for their role in helping the team maintain a disciplined yet composed atmosphere.

“They just talk about team first things, doing all the little things, like preparing the right way, getting our plans in place, the little extra efforts in the field, the extra efforts with the bat, being that little bit more selfless with the bat, being that little more selfless with the ball. All things like that all add up across the season to a team environment which those two have created and to be honest our group has a lot of fun,” he said.

He further added, “I think those two are a big reason behind why they have a lot of fun because we understand mistakes happen, we understand stuff goes wrong in a tournament, that's fine as long as we are trying our best, we are trying to execute, we are trying to do things the right way all the time, that's all we can do. We back our skill to come out on top in the end, but those two create a very relaxed environment.”

As the team prepares to play the remainder of its home matches in Dharamshala, Hopes highlighted the squad's affinity for the stadium and its role in rejuvenating the players. Hoping for the same support from the local crowd as seen in Mullanpur, Hopes said, “The guys love playing here and our home following in Mullanpur this year has been outstanding as well. We've had packed houses, all wearing red, it's been great and we expect the same up here… We're excited to be up here and to play at this venue.”

“It's one of the most beautiful grounds in the world and it comes at a good time in the tournament for us. It's been a long tournament and the boys come up here and they refresh, regroup and hopefully put on a bit of a show tomorrow night and get ourselves back in it,” he added

Punjab Kings will compete against Delhi Capitals at the HPCA Cricket Stadium, Dharamshala on Monday, May 11 at 7:30 PM.