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If the entire country had one message to give India's men's or women's teams ahead of any big international tournament, it would most likely be - Be fearless but not careless. Punjab Kings, Punjab, and recently, India's wicketkeeper-batter, Prabhsimran Singh was born and brought up on this exact philosophy.
He showed that in IPL 2023. Against Delhi Capitals on a pitch that was vicious even for Kotla's standards, he piled on 103 runs off just 65 balls for Punjab Kings. Every other batter combined scored 64 runs in an overall score of 167. Despite starting the chase well, the Capitals were bowled out for just 136 at their home.
When the Kings lost their third wicket for just 45 runs, Prabhsimran had hit three boundaries and a six off his first 18 balls. Sam Curran stood firm for a partnership, so he worked hard to reach 27 (31) before blasting 76 off his next 34. He went from fearless to careful to fearless again.
There were a lot of positives, but what stood out was that most of his six maximus came over the long boundary towards the mid-wicket region.
"I just feel that if you hit it well, whether the boundary is big or small, it doesn't matter," Prabhsimran told Sportskeeda in an exclusive interview. "Even if you play the timing-dependent shots, it doesn't matter. So that's never been an issue with me. Yes, that wicket was turning, and it was a bit tough but if you are set it's a bit easier for you. I was set at that time so I wanted to take it deep."
Out of the 15 players with the best powerplay strike rate (minimum 150 runs) in IPL 2023, Prabhsimran was the only one yet to play international cricket.
Seven players, including Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad, did better than his 142.20 strike rate but seven others, including Virat Kohli and Jos Buttler, were behind him.
Yuvraj Singh's role
He dedicated that century to two people: his paternal uncle, Satvinder Singh, SunRisers Hyderabad batter Anmolpreet's father, and Yuvraj Singh.
Satvinder, who Prabhsimran calls tayaji, used to take him, his younger brother Tejpreet Singh, who plays for the Punjab U-23 team, and Anmolpreet on the same bike to training and gave the boys a lot of their early coaching.
Yuvraj, on the other hand, adopted Prabhsimran, Anmolpreet, Shubman Gill, and Abhishek Sharma in 2020, during the COVID-19 lockdowns. Their parents were worried about sending them to practice amid the rising cases when Yuvraj invited them to his home to work on their fitness and batting for almost two months.
"When I made my debut in T20 cricket in Mushtaq Ali, he was there in the team," Prabhsimran said. "I used to be very afraid of him, [I used to think], 'I am playing with such a big player!' But everything started slowly. He must have seen something in my game so he called me and we practiced. He didn't make us practice like a coach but always kept us like brothers. That's why it's very easy to open up with him as well."
Yuvraj often calls him after matches, irrespective of how he has performed, to motivate or support him.
"Last season during the Mushtaq Ali Trophy, I got out early in a couple of games," he recalled. "But when the tournament ended I was the second-highest run-scorer. I talked to him after those two matches, and he told me, 'You didn't score in two matches, so what? When you'll start to cover it, you'll do it quickly.' We had a long chat ... if a player of his stature motivates you, your confidence goes up."
Watching all four Punjab cricketers would reveal a hint of similarities with Yuvraj, especially against fast bowlers. Look at Gill's pulls, Abhishek's lofted shots over the bowler, Anmolpreet's straight drive, and Prabhsimran's heave over square-leg.
When it comes to playing spin, though, Prabhsimran is closest to the ruthlessness that Yuvraj showed and how quickly he read the length of the bowler. Prabhsimran often plays away from his body against spin and it doesn't look logical or exactly from the rule book, but it's effective because of the sheer power he generates.
"I think this is my plus point that when I play these shots, I do it with full confidence that, 'I will back my shot'" Prabhsimran said. "I used to play a lot of matches [in his early years]. No matter where it was, I never saw the wicket. If I was getting a chance, I just wanted to play! It's just sometimes you'd get good wickets, sometimes bad, and the more you play the more accustomed you get."
According to ESPNcricinfo, at the time he hit that century against the Capitals, only 15 players had a strike rate of 150-plus against spinners (minimum of 50 balls) in the tournament. Among them, Prabhsimran had the best average - 123.
IPL catapult
Ask a Kings fan and they'd guess Prabhsimran's age to be 28-29. After all, he's 22 but he made his IPL debut four years ago.
The Kings signed him for ₹4.5 crore as an 18-year-old after impressive performances at the Under-19 level. They gave him at least one but not more than two games every season and kept on releasing and re-signing him at lesser prices. Bereft of chances, he never scored more than 20 runs in a season.
But he kept his head down and worked in the nets to burnish his strengths, while also adding new shots, including the reverse sweep, the scoop, and the pick-up.
The result? Runs for the state kept coming and improving year-on-year: he has 864 in List-A at a strike rate of 93.81 and 1514 in T20s at 140.70. Before IPL 2023, he made sure to knock the Kings' door down through first-class cricket returns too, scoring 818 runs, including a 202 against eventual champions Saurashtra.
Prabhsimran said runs in domestic cricket give the player some momentum and confidence but may or may not increase the franchise's trust in them. So when the Kings made him open in their IPL 2023's first match against Kolkata Knight Riders, he knew he had to clutch at straws and clutch tightly.
"No one says that you'll get five-six chances," Prabhsimran said. "I think everyone thinks that if you are getting a chance it won't be more than one or two matches. However, even if you don't get enough runs, even if you score 20-25, score it in such a way that the management backs you."
That's what he did. A 12-ball 23 in that match set him in such a way that he's yet to look back. His best-ever IPL season was followed by a brilliant Deodhar Trophy.
He was the top-scorer for the star-studded but struggling North Zone team and earned their only century in the tournament: a stroke-filled 121 (107) against Central Zone when no teammate scored more than 51.
In between those two was the Emerging Asia Cup in Sri Lanka. He didn't play a match there as India A preferred Dhruv Jurel. The team eventually lost to Pakistan A in the final but Prabhsimran experienced one of the happiest days of his life.
The India call-up
It was 11 pm on July 14 when India announced the squad for the 2023 Asian Games and the young boy from Punjab saw his name written under "Team India (Senior Men)".
"I got excited and told my mom, she was very happy too," he said. "The next day I told my uncle. He knew I worked very hard this time and he has been very supportive as well. Everyone was very happy. And the reactions were extraordinary when I came home."
When Satvinder was not around, Prabhsimran's mother, Jasbir Kaur, used to drop him off for matches or to the academy. She continues to be a key support for him.
"When she calls and tells you, 'Even if you have gotten out in one or two matches it doesn't matter because you only will score a lot of runs as well', those things are very important," he said. "I can't describe the role she has played in my life."
Prabhsimran also said that though he has seen a good few months, continuing the good form is crucial. So celebrations at home about the maiden call-up have been postponed too, for he will soon be off to camp organized by the Punjab state team.
Prabhsimran's good time didn't come without support
Success is almost never an individual's alone. As his family and coaches did in his early years, Prabhsimran's excellent 2023 so far has had contributions from his captain at the Kings, Shikhar Dhawan, and batting coach Wasim Jaffer.
Dhawan almost took him under his wing. He would often ask him to stay around in the nets and bat with him and guide him if he'd play a wrong shot. The same relationship went to the field when they opened together.
"He used to say, 'Till I am standing here, just express yourself. No problem even if you get out in one or two matches, just express yourself'," Prabhsimran said.
Jaffer, meanwhile, helped with the technical aspects, talking to him almost every day during nets alongside extensive video analysis.
"Sometimes while playing you realize that a particular shot isn't coming off nicely, he helped a lot in those kinds of things," Prabhsimran said. "When you are not getting a shot right, you try that more and more but he told me a lot of alternatives. He was a big support this season."
Even though the Kings finished eighth, they unearthed a future star, someone who might have a long future with the national team too. If he can keep up the consistency, an aggressive versatile batter who can play in almost any position and is safe with the gloves could be of immense use to India in any format.
Maturity
During the IPL season, the Kings' spin-bowling coach Sunil Joshi, remarked that though Prabhsimran always had talent and work ethic, he has now "matured", which allows him to respect bowlers and remain calm in situations.
"Paaji (brother), even if you are playing aggressively, you need to use your mind," he said. "It's not like if you are an aggressive player you don't have to use your mind at all. You need to use your mind to go forward. I always play with this thought: 'Play fearless but not careless' and Yuvi paaji has also told me this. I am keeping these things in mind."
But that doesn't mean he hasn't changed at all.
"I used to fight a lot when I was younger," he said. "If a bowler said something to me, I would get very aggressive. But since my under-19 days, I don't care if someone is saying something to me or not. Now, I just think maybe he's getting frustrated because I am not getting out or scoring runs. That's enough achievement for me. I am a very calm guy, paaji, my game is aggressive but that's it!"
