Manoj Tiwary, the former Indian cricketer, has accused Ricky Ponting, the head coach of Punjab Kings in the IPL 2025, of having a bias towards foreign players.
Tiwary made this claim on social media platform X (formerly Twitter) following Punjab Kings’ match against Kolkata Knight Riders on Saturday, April 26, 2025, which was affected by rain.
In his post, Tiwary stated that his “gut feeling” suggests Punjab Kings will not win the IPL trophy this season. He elaborated that during the match, he observed that the coach, Ricky Ponting, did not send in-form Indian batters Nehal Wadhera and Shashank Singh. Instead, Ponting seemed to have more trust in his foreign players to deliver, but they couldn’t perform as expected, showing a “lack of confidence” in the Indian talent.
Tiwary further implied that if Ponting continues to show a lack of confidence in the Indian players by not giving them opportunities in crucial situations, it would be a significant reason why Punjab Kings might not lift the IPL trophy this year.
This is not the first time Ponting has faced such scrutiny. Earlier in the IPL 2025 season, he was criticized for seemingly favoring a higher number of Australian players in the squad.
It remains to be seen how Punjab Kings and Ricky Ponting will respond to these allegations as the IPL 2025 season progresses. Punjab Kings are currently positioned fourth in the league table with 11 points from nine matches.
