Former Indian cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin has said that although he felt that Azmatullah Omarzai deserved a place in Punjab Kings’ playing XI against the Gujarat Titans, Ricky Ponting’s masterstroke of playing Xavier Bartlett did wonders for the franchise.
PBKS had other Aussie options on the bench as well, including Ben Dwarshuis and Mitchell Owen. While Marcus Stoinis made little impact with a two-ball duck, the duo of Cooper Connolly and Bartlett played a crucial role in shaping the outcome.
The latter returned figures of 0/36 from four overs in the first innings but made a key contribution late in the chase. Walking in at No. 9 after Marco Jansen’s dismissal, Bartlett eased the pressure by smashing Prasidh Krishna for a six off the first delivery
of the penultimate over.
Connolly, meanwhile, delivered a standout innings of 72 off 44 deliveries on his IPL debut, earning the Player of the Match award for his match-winning effort.
“I thought before the start of the game that Azmatullah Omarzai should play. Dude, why is Bartlett playing? But the way Bartlett bowled and batted, Ricky Ponting once again proved right by filling all the overseas slots with Australians,” Ashwin said while speaking on his YouTube channel.
Connolly emerged as Punjab’s marquee signing at the IPL 2026 mini auction after the team opted to retain most of the squad that finished runners-up in IPL 2025. He slotted into the No. 3 role after Josh Inglis’ controversial exit.
“This is his first game in the IPL. It isn’t easy. The guy comes from Australia and has never played cricket in India. It wasn’t a bouncy-type wicket; it was a skiddy wicket and he adapted and played a very good innings,” Ashwin said.
“There was a lot of pressure near the end; even then, he held his nerve and finished the chase well. He is only 22 years old and he performed so well in the BBL that he opened everyone’s eyes,” Ashwin added.
