New Delhi: Redemption comes in different ways. For Shashank Singh, it came in joy, relief and satisfaction. Three months ago, Shashank Singh’s selection at the IPL 2024 auction led to a massive controversy. After winning the bid, Punjab Kings co-owners Preity Zinta and Ness Wadia were stunned after realising they had bought the wrong Shashank Singh.

PBKS did not intend to buy the 32-year-old former Sunrisers batter, instead, they wanted to acquire the services of a 19-year-old rookie from Bengal who was Shashank’s namesake. But since the gavel had already fallen, PBKS had to go ahead with the buy.

The franchise might have welcomed Shashank Singh to their team through a post on X (formerly) later on but he remained an unwanted player. That was until the Match 17 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024.

Shashank, a victim of mistaken identity, proved his worth with a sensational knock against Gujarat Titans. The Chattisgarh batter scored an unbeaten half-century under pressure to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. After losing their top-order for 70 runs and half their side for 111 runs, Punjab were way behind the 8-ball game. Any hopes of a miracle vanished with the fall of Sikander Raza’s wicket in the 13th over.

By then Shashank had already walked out to bat and added 41 off 22 with Raza before the latter was dismissed against the run of play. But Shashank kept on going and stitched a quickfire 39-run stand with Jitesh Sharma to keep Punjab in the hunt.

The match took another turn with Jitesh’s wicket in the 16th over. But he found an able partner in Ashutosh Sharma (31 off 17 balls) and added 43 runs in 22 balls for the seventh wicket to take the Kings to an unlikely victory. Shashank remained unbeaten on 61 off just 29 balls to guide the Kings to their second win of the season.

Shashank has scored 754 runs in 58 domestic T20s at a strike rate of 137.34. The ace batter plays for Chhattisgarh at the national level and has played for three other IPL franchises – SunRisers Hyderabad, Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals) and Rajasthan Royals before Punjab Kings.

Brief Scores: Gujarat Titans: 199 for 4 in 20 overs (Shubman Gill 89, Kane Williamson 26, Sai Sudharsan 33; Kagiso Rabada 2/44) lost to Punjab Kings 200 for 7 in 19.5 overs (Prabhsimran Singh 35, Shashank Singh 61 not out, Ashutosh Sharma 31; Noor Ahmad 2/32) by three wickets.