Why is Bairstow not playing: Why Jonny Bairstow is not playing IPL 2022 for Punjab Kings?

Dixit Bhargav | 02/04/2022
Why is Bairstow not playing: Why Jonny Bairstow is not playing IPL 2022 for Punjab Kings?

Why Bairstow not playing IPL 2022: The English wicket-keeper batter had represented Sunrisers Hyderabad between 2019-2021.

The ongoing 15th season will be the fourth Indian Premier League season for England wicket-keeper batter Jonny Bairstow. Having represented Sunrisers Hyderabad between 2019-2021, Bairstow is slated to play for Punjab Kings this season.

In 28 innings across three seasons for SRH, Bairstow had scored 1,038 runs at an average of 41.52 and a strike rate of 142.19 including one century and seven half-centuries. Overall, Bairstow has scored 3,904 runs in in 153 T20 innings at an average and strike rate of 30.74 and 137.56 respectively.

Bairstow, who had priced himself at INR 1.5 crore in the mega auction, allured interest from Delhi Capitals, Kings and Sunrisers before PBKS eventually bid INR 6.75 crore for him.

Why is Bairstow not playing IPL 2022 for Punjab Kings?

Having said that, it is worth a mention that Bairstow hasn’t played any IPL 2022 match for Punjab till now. Bairstow, who was in West Indies for a three-match Test series until last week, had landed India on Thursday.

It was due to a mandatory three-day quarantine period that Bairstow didn’t play Punjab’s second match against Kolkata Knight Riders last night.

Set to play their third match against defending champions Chennai Super Kings in Mumbai tomorrow, Bairstow is likely to be available for selection.

Kings, who have played Sri Lanka’s Bhanuka Rajapaksa as a specialist wicket-keeper batter in place of Bairstow thus far, face a dilemma with respect to accommodating Bairstow. Highest run-scorer for the team in the first two matches, Rajapaksa’s 74 runs have come at a strike rate of 238.70 (highest for batters with more than 50 runs in IPL 2022).

Assuming that PBKS include Bairstow for another Englishman Liam Livingstone, it would be too short a run for a player who has been bought for an opulent INR 11.5 crore.

Post Edited By: Dixit Bhargav
Indian Premier League IPL 2022 Jonny Bairstow PBKS Punjab Kings

About the author

Dixit Bhargav

Born and brought up in Pathankot, Dixit Bhargav is an engineering and sports management graduate who works as a Cricket Editor at The SportsRush. Having written more than 10,000 articles across more than five years at TSR, his first cricketing memory dates back to 2002 when former India captain Sourav Ganguly had waved his jersey at the historic Lord’s balcony. What followed for an 8-year-old was an instant adulation for both Ganguly and the sport. The optimist in him is waiting for the day when Punjab Kings will win their maiden Indian Premier League title. When not watching cricket, he is mostly found in a cinema hall watching a Punjabi movie.

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