Kings XI Punjab

Can Yuvraj and teammates give Kings XI Punjab owner Preity Zinta the IPL trophy she so desperately craves for?

A vividly disappointed Preity Zinta, one of the most involved team owners in the IPL, remains one of the most enduring photographs of the tournament's first edition.

Giving her players warm and affectionate hugs after every good performance, Zinta has done everything expected of her as a team owner. It is now on Yuvraj Singh and his teammates to give her the big prize-the IPL trophy.

Kings XI Punjab, given the talent pool available with them, start as the dark horses of the tournament. In Yuvraj Singh, they have the tournament's cleanest hitter and the only player to have hit six sixes in an over in T20 cricket.

His current form, perhaps the best he has played in his life, coupled with the fact that he will be leading the side may well make IPL season two Yuvraj Singh's tournament.

One thing is certain - Yuvraj doesn't lack the incentive or the intensity. Every IPL fan remembers his acrobatic last ball effort against the Mumbai Indians in giving his side a 1 run victory in season one. The sprint after running out his man was proof that adrenalin was pumping. If Yuvraj can lead from the front, Punjab will surely be one of the most exciting teams of the tournament.

An unlikely hero for the Kings XI, one who has the potential to turn a few heads, is their British Punjabi recruit Ravinder Bopara. Ravi, while trying to cement his spot in the English side, is capable of playing a big part in the IPL.

His ability to score all round the wicket, bowl some tight medium pace and field inside the fifteen yard circle makes him a very good buy for $250,000 (Dh919,500).

Just as Shaun Marsh had emerged the surprise package for Punjab in IPL season one, Bopara can do an encore come April 18, 2009.

One player who will be missed by the Kings XI is Shantakumar Sreesanth. A tearful Sreesanth remains IPL's most enduring picture postcard and it was imperative Sree remedies his cry baby image. With some decent domestic performances under his belt, he was once again back in reckoning for an India spot until a side strain sidelined him.

It is important to emphasise in this context that his spell if 4-0-12-2 had done much to give India an unexpected victory against the Australians in the semifinal of the world T-20 in South Africa and Sree will be a major gap that Kings XI will do well to plug. Two other Kings XI stars who have the potential to win them matches are Kumar Sangakkara and Irfan Pathan. While Sangakkara will give Yuvraj's team the much needed flexibility, we have recently seen what Irfan can do in a T20 game when the chips are down.

To his credit he had outdone his brother in the only T-20 game against Sri Lanka in February winning India a terrific encounter in the process. An in form Irfan is a much needed recipe for success for Yuvraj and Preity.

Finally, what makes the Kings XI one of the most attractive sides of the tournament is their owner, Preity Zinta. Beautiful, attractive and sophisticated, Zinta is the perfect brand ambassador for the cash rich IPL especially in alien South African conditions.

Her knowledge of the game is not superficial and her interest genuine. This was best evident when she flew down to New Zealand to watch the one day series.

It will be good for the event if Preity makes the winning podium with her boys, a just reward for a dedicated and involved owner.