Mohali: A new look Kings XI Punjab under Ravichandran Ashwin will take on Delhi Daredevils in their opening encounter of IPL-2018 here on Sunday, as both sides look to begin the T20 tournament on a winning note.
This season, KXIP look a balanced side with Ashwin set for his maiden stint as captain of an IPL team. It has players of the calibre of Yuvraj Singh, Chris Gayle, David Miller, K L Rahul and Aaron Finch not to speak of the likes of Manoj Tiwary, Mohit Sharma, Axar Patel and Mujeeb-ur-Rahman.
Barring a few who have been retained, most of the domestic and some foreign players have joined the team this season. Punjab mentor Virender Sehwag rated the new-look team as the best of all seasons.
"We have the best side, if I compare last ten years," Sehwag said, adding that the team is a balanced one with a right mix of Indian and foreign players.
Punjab's captain in the previous season, Glenn Maxwell will now turn up for the opposition side and so will Rahul Tewatia and Gurkeerat Mann.
Both Sehwag and head coach Brad Hodge heaped praise on Ashwin, even though captaining an IPL side may be the off-spinner's maiden role.
