Punjab Kings’ Cooper Connolly struck eight fours and seven sixes in his knock of 87 against LSG. | Photo Credit: SHASHI SHEKHAR KASHYAP

In Punjab Kings’ thrill-a-minute batting line-up, which posted this Indian Premier League (IPL) season’s highest total on Sunday here, Cooper Connolly’s approach strikes a discordant note.

The 22-year-old Australian doesn’t attempt to manufacture those cheeky shots that have become synonymous with T20 cricket but rather relies on his gift of timing and placement.

Neither does he try to force the pace of the game. During his 182-run stand with the belligerent Priyansh Arya, he bided his time in the PowerPlay before finishing with a 46-ball 87 that helped the Kings to a match-winning 254 for seven against Lucknow Super Giants.

READ | Priyansh, Connolly put on a show to help Punjab Kings extend unbeaten run

“Everyone has their own understanding of their ability and how they go about it, and what works for them. It is about individually understanding what works for you in those moments and what makes you successful for a long period of time. We have discussions about what works for each other, and we take little things from each other’s books,” Connolly said, while adding that he was enjoying watching Priyansh ‘go about it in his own way’ from the non-striker’s end.

For Connolly, who tops the run charts for the Kings, with 223 runs in five innings, ‘there is a time and a place’ for innovative stroke-making.

“I think it is about knowing their strengths and sticking to their strengths. They know where they’re dominant. They know what some areas that they might get targeted in are,” Connolly said about the different approaches of the Kings batters.

It was a similar case of backing his strengths and ability for Super Giants pacer Prince Yadav, who bowled a stingy spell (2/25 in four overs) in a match that saw more than 450 runs being plundered.

“The plan was to bowl as many yorkers as I could; it is something I have been working on.”

Published on Apr 20, 2026