Is Jitesh Sharma PBKS' vice-captain? Sanjay Bangar clears confusion after loss against RR | IPL 2024

Shikhar Dhawan missed Punjab Kings' IPL 2024 match against the Rajasthan Royals on Saturday due to a niggle but what raised eyebrows was when Sam Curran came out for the toss for PBKS.

Jitesh had appeared for the captain's seminar meeting and many assumed that he had been given the role of being the deputy to Dhawan for the 2024 season.

Watching Sam Curran coming up for the toss was followed by an immense backlash from fans who asked why and how this happened.

But now, Head of Cricket Development for Punjab Kings, Sanjay Bangar confirmed that Jitesh was never the designated vice-captain and Curran was always going to stand in for Dhawan, having led the side in three matches last year.

"No no, Jitesh wasn't the designated vice-captain. I think, the impression could have been because he attended the captains' seminar or meeting at the start of the IPL but the thought was always that [of Curran standing in for Dhawan] because Sam has led the team in the previous year as well," Bangar said during the post-match press conference.

Bangar also revealed the reason behind Sam Curran missing out from the captain's photoshoot.

"He was late to arrive from the UK and because he wanted to have a few sessions, that is the reason we couldn't send him to Chennai for the inauguration of the season hence Jitesh was sent because the directive from the IPL members was that a player has to attend. Because of that, we sent Jitesh in. That wasn't the case that Jitesh was the stand-in captain. We were very clear in our minds that if at all there had been an opening, Sam Curran would be taking over and doing the job as captain," former Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers Bengaluru coach Bangar added.

'You can never take it for granted': Samson after RR maintains stronghold on the top spot of points table