Punjab Kings made headlines when they purchased Tamil Nadu batsman Shahrukh Khan at a mini-auction ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 season. Since the batsman shares a name with Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan, who co-owns Kolkata Knight Riders, Punjab Kings co-owner Preity Zinta was seen at the auction teasing the actor’s son Aryan, claiming, “We got Shahrukh.” Punjab Kings mocked Shah Rukh Khan’s nickname “King Khan” in the caption of a video of the batsman hitting a perfect pull shot in training on Sunday.
King Khan 𝒑𝒖𝒍𝒍𝒊𝒏𝒈 us towards him like 💥#SaddaPunjab #PunjabKings #IPL2021 pic.twitter.com/WuRg6BE3zT
— Punjab Kings (@PunjabKingsIPL) April 4, 2021
Shahrukh Khan can be seen in the video sending a brief delivery to the cleaners while rocking back and nailing a pull shot.
Punjab Kings bought Shahrukh for Rs 5.25 crore at the auction after he impressed with his big-hitting in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
At the auction, the Punjab Kings purchased nine players.
Punjab have invested a lot of money on two Australians who haven’t featured in the T20 league yet. Jhye Richardson was bought for Rs 14 crore, while Riley Meredith, another Australian fast bowler, was bought for Rs 8 crore.
They have got Dawid Malan, the top-ranked Twenty20 International batsman in the country, for Rs 1.5 crore.
Moises Henriques, an Australian all-rounder, has signed a Rs 4.2 crore contract to play for Punjab in the upcoming edition of the franchise-based tournament.
The team led by KL Rahul also added West Indies all-rounder Fabian Allen and Indian uncapped players Jalaj Saxena, Saurabh Kumar, and Utkarsh Singh to their roster.
Punjab Kings will kick off their season on April 12 at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai against Rajasthan Royals.