Punjab Kings (PBKS) CEO Satish Menon on Wednesday described the signing of premier seam-bowling all-rounder Hardik Pandya as an ‘important step’ in the franchise’s bid to win the Indian Premier League (IPL) title. The trade had been in the making for nearly a week. On Wednesday, the BCCI formally announced that Pandya had joined the franchise from Mumbai Indians (MI) in a trade deal that sent left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh to the five-time champions ahead of the 2027 IPL season.
“We are delighted to welcome Hardik to the Punjab Kings family. He is a proven match-winner who brings tremendous experience, confidence and a winning mentality. His ability to change the course of a game with both bat and ball makes him a valuable addition to our squad.
PBKS are yet to win an IPL title, with their best-ever result being runners-up finishes in the 2014 and 2025 seasons.
Hardik’s arrival is an important step in that direction,” Menon said in a statement on Wednesday. “As we enter the 20th season of the IPL, our focus remains on building a team capable of competing at the highest level and bringing the trophy home to Punjab. During that period, he became one of the team’s main weapons with the ball and is now the leading wicket-taker for India in men’s T20Is.
Pandya played a major role in four of MI’s title-winning campaigns in 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020, before leaving for Gujarat Titans (GT), whom he led to the IPL 2022 title. In 2024, Pandya moved back to MI from GT via a trade deal and took over as their captain, though it did not yield the desired results in terms of winning championships. Since then, he has claimed 111 wickets in 96 matches for the franchise.
