This article is part of our IPL Preview series.
Kings XI Punjab is a franchise which represent an important state in the country and is one of the eight teams which will take part in the upcoming 12th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Kings XI is one of the three franchises – alongside Delhi Capitals and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) – who are yet to lift the title.
The team is perhaps one of the most underachieved unit in the competition's history as they've only managed to qualify for the playoffs twice in 11 editions – last of which came in the 2014 season where they ended as runners up.
In the 2018 season of the IPL, Punjab finished on the seventh spot with just six wins out of the 14 matches played.
This time around, the team will be led by veteran off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who will have the coaching assistance of the former New Zealand coach Mike Hesson.
The team will have the services of local talented batsmen like Mayank Agarwal, Mandeep Singh, KL Rahul and Karun Nair alongside foreign players like West Indies explosive opener Chris Gayle, young Nicholas Pooran and South Africa's David Miller as they make a formidable batting unit over all.
On the bowling front, the team management will be relying on the likes of pacers India's Mohammad Shami, England's Sam Curran, Australia's Andrew Tye, South Africa's Hardus Viljoen and Afghanistan's highly-rated leg-spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman to provide timely breakthroughs.
The team will also have the all-round services of captain Ashwin and Australia's Moises Henriques as the duo will bring a lot of stability to the playing eleven.
Key Facts
Kings XI Punjab's highest total in the IPL history of 232-2 came in the match against the RCB in 2011 season, whereas highest team score of 245-6 against the franchise was registered by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the 2018 season.
Kings XI's lowest score of 73 came while playing against Rising Pune Supergiant in 2017, whereas lowest score of 67 against the franchise was registered by Delhi Daredevils in the 10th edition of the IPL.
Punjab's largest victory in the IPL history in terms of runs came in the match against RCB in 2011 edition, whereas their biggest defeat in terms of runs came in the match against RCB as well, but in the 2015 season.
Out of all the franchise which are still taking part in the competition, Punjab's best win percentage of 59.09 is against Delhi, whereas their worst win percentage of just 25 is against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Highest individual score of 122 for Kings XI in IPL history was registered by former Indian opening batsman Virender Sehwag in the 2014 season, whereas most runs (659) for the franchise in a single season was registered by KL Rahul last year.
Australia's Shaun Marsh holds the record for most number of runs (2,477) scored by any Kings XI Punjab player in the history of the competition.
Right-arm pacer Ankit Rajpoot holds the record for the most impressive figures of 5-14 in a single match for the franchise which he did in the match against Sunrisers Hyderabad, whereas Australia's Andrew Tye holds the record for most number of wickets (24) for the franchise in a single season.
Right-arm leg-spinner Piyush Chawla has the most number of wickets (84) for Kings XI Punjab in the IPL history.
