IPL 2025 Auction: Will Rishabh Pant Reunite With Coach Ricky Ponting at Punjab Kings?

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Indian wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant is all set to enter an Indian Premier League (IPL) Auction for the second time in his career after he was released by the Delhi Capitals (DC) on Thursday (October 31).

Pant, who was roped in by DC in 2016, can still go back to the Delhi-based side during the IPL Mega Auction 2025 later this month. But it is very likely, the wicketkeeper-batter could end up elsewhere, and may also be in line for a reunion with his former DC head coach.

Earlier this year, Ricky Ponting left the head coach role at the Capitals, ending a seven-year coaching stint with the Delhi-based franchise. There were reports that Pant could follow his coach out of DC. And that happened, but now the question arises if Pant will join Ponting at his current team.

The former Australian captain Ponting was appointed the head coach of Punjab Kings just a few months after leaving DC. Ponting is a huge fan of Pant, who will be one of three big name Indians entering the auction.

With the biggest purse heading into the auction, PBKS are firm favourites to land one or even two of the aforementioned names as Ponting was surprised with their releases.

"There are a lot of exciting players. So many. I'm a bit surprised with some of the non-Indian retentions if you like, with both Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant being available in the auctions," Ponting said, as quoted by the ICC.

"It was a bit surprising, even KL Rahul to a certain degree. It seems like individuals or franchises are busy looking to move in different directions to some of their players."

This, however, means that teams will have to strategise better with respect to their team composition as an excited Ponting revealed how the team may strategise for the auction without giving hints about who their main target would be.

"This is where it gets exciting," Ponting said. "You've got to understand who your number one target is and how much money you are willing to pay for them. That's such a big part of it (IPL), of getting the auction right strategy-wise. And then handing it over to us, as a group of coaches."

Will Rishabh Pant reunite with Ricky Ponting at Punjab Kings?

PBKS has the biggest purse of Rs 110.5 Crore, having retained just two uncapped players in Prabhsimran Singh and Shashank Singh. So, with so much money available, PBKS start favourites to land many players.

Their need for a captain will make PBKS desperate to land one of Iyer, Rahul or Pant. Pant and Iyer have already worked under Ponting at DC, while Rahul is an ex PBKS captain himself.

However, Rahul is unlikely to make a return to PBKS, having left them for a new challenge a few seasons ago. Iyer is very likely heading back to Delhi Capitals for the captaincy role, leaving Pant as the most probable pick for Punjab Kings.

PBKS will be aware of the challenges they will face from other teams, who will all be keen on a player like Pant. The most likely challengers are Chennai Super Kings, who need a future replacement for Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

The other team that could challenge PBKS in their quest for Pant is, Royal Challenger Bengaluru, who head into the auction with the second biggest purse of Rs 83 Crore. However, RCB's prime target may be Rahul. And it will alll depend on the order their names are being drawn out for the bidding process.