Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], April 4 (ANI): Punjab Kings (PBKS) batter Shashank Singh praised Priyansh Arya for standing out with his mental strength and clarity, following his destructive 39 off 11 balls against the five-time Indian Premier League (IPL) champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK), on Friday in Chennai.
Shashank believes Arya understands his role well, knows his scoring areas, and has shown impressive maturity in his batting, which the team greatly values.
Arya's blazing start set the tone for Punjab Kings as they chased down a big target of 210 runs against Chennai Super Kings to register back-to-back wins in the IPL 2026.
"We know with IPL, the second season is the most important. Because the teams do find the weaknesses in you. But with Priyansh, what we as a team really liked last year is that he's mentally very tough. He doesn't speak much. But he's very mentally tough. He knows his role, and he knows his areas where he can score runs. He's very young, but the way he's matured regarding his batting, I think, is fabulous," Shashank told the reporters after the match.
Shashank expressed strong confidence in Arya, highlighting that his technique is solid and reliable. He described Arya as a compact batter who focuses on timing the ball well rather than overhitting, consistently trying to find the middle of the bat, and feels Arya is well-suited for the role of an opener.
"I think he'll do well for sure. Because technique was never an issue for him. I mean, if you see his batting, he's quite compact. He hits the ball well. He tries to middle it. He doesn't try to overhit. So all those things which are required, especially by an opener, I think he has it," Shashank said.
The 24-year-old left-hand batter made a quickfire 39 off just 11 balls with the help of three fours and four sixes, which helped the PBKS cross the 60-run mark inside the powerplay. Arya was named Player of the Match for his impressive knock, which helped the Kings win the match by five wickets. (ANI)