JUST IN: Ravichandran Ashwin could captain Kings XI in IPL 2018

Kings XI Punjab have had a very pained 10 seasons in the IPL, having made it to the playoff/knockouts just twice. Despite boasting of some of the biggest T20 stars in the world, the Kings have always found a way to mess things up when it comes to stepping up during important moments.

The Kings XI management had a big task on their hand during the mega auction, as they not only had to get a well balanced squad in place but also buy a good enough captain.

Kings XI have had a huge leadership crisis in the last few years, juggling between Maxwell, Miller and Vijay in the past few seasons.

Having recruited Yuvraj Singh and Ravichandran Ashwin this year, KXIP have been eagerly waiting for the official announcement regarding the captain of their side.

A source close to Mid-Day has revealed that Ashwin is the prime candidate for the captaincy, but a final decision will be taken after Virender Sehwag returns from Switzerland, where is currently playing the St. Moritz Ice Cricket Challenge.

“In all probability, Ashwin will lead the Kings XI Punjab team. However, a final decision will be made only after Virender Sehwag (team director and mentor) returns from Switzerland,” the source said.

Ashwin was purchased for a whopping Rs 7.6 crore by the Punjab franchise and they might have had captaincy in mind for the Indian international, having gone all out for him.

Ashwin too is looking forward to captaining the Punjab franchise having led Tamil Nadu in the Ranji Trophy.

“As of now, nothing has been spoken about regarding captaincy. I have done well for TN in the past as skipper. I haven’t led TN in the T20 format. I’m someone who will not let things run away. If at all given an opportunity, I will try to give my best,” Ashwin told the media during the Vijay Hazare trophy.

While Ashwin seems to be perfect captaincy material, considering that he is very tactical in nature, however, he hasn’t performed that well in the shorter format in the last few months, and has fallen behind in the pecking order, with Chahal and Kuldeep preferred in the shorter formats.

It will be interesting to see how Kings XI approach this conundrum.