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IPL 2026: Everyone Got A Taste Of The Maturity He Has With The Bat, Says PBKS' Haddin On Connolly

Chennai Super Kings: Punjab Kings assistant coach Brad Haddin said young batting all-rounder Cooper Connolly showed remarkable maturity in his debut IPL outing, as the side prepares to face Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Friday. Connolly struck an unbeaten 72 off 44 balls and held his nerve in a chase of 163 after PBKS suffered a middle-order wobble against Gujarat Titans in New Chandigarh. Weve known about Cooper Connolly in Australia for some time. We were pretty keen to get him early in the auction and spoke early in our preparation about bringing him in before everyone could get a real look at how good he was. I think everyone got a taste of the maturity he has with the bat and saw the way he controlled the innings in the first game. It was his first IPL game under pressure with things going on around him, but weve known about that ability for a long time, and I think everyone got the opportunity to see his skills, said Haddin in the pre-match press conference. Haddin also provided a fitness update on skipper Shreyas Iyer, who injured his hand in the previous match after being hit by a shot from Connolly. Theres no break (in the bone), which is a good thing. Now its just about getting the swelling down and getting the movement back in the hand, so he should be right for tomorrow, he said. Haddin said PBKS had worked hard in the preparation period to build flexibility in their squad and adapt to varying pitches. Weve got great flexibility in our squad. Weve spent a lot of time over the last two years trying to get that balance right so we can cover different surfaces in the IPL. On assessing the conditions at Chepauk, where the pitchs nature is flat, Haddin said, Well look at all the numbers around the surface here. Theres a lot of data on how it plays and whether you need to play an extra spinner. The wicket has become a bit flatter over time, and theres more grass on it at the moment than weve seen previously, so well probably make a judgment call after training today. But as I said before, were very lucky with the flexibility in our squad, so were not too worried about what surface well get. On pacer Xavier Bartletts progress, Haddin noted his evolution as both a bowler and lower-order batter. If you look closely at Xavier Bartletts game, hes improved a lot over the last 12 months. The wicket has become a bit flatter over time, and theres more grass on it at the moment than weve seen previously, so well probably make a judgment call after training today. But as I said before, were very lucky with the flexibility in our squad, so were not too worried about what surface well get. Also Read: Live Cricket Score Haddin signed off by saying PBKS was happy to get off the mark in the tournament with a win. Were very happy. Its important to get your tournament started in the right way. Theres room for improvement in what we did in the first game, but were very pleased with the way the game panned out in the end. Article Source: IANS