IPL 2025: Lockie Ferguson ruled out indefinitely, says PBKS fast bowling coach James Hopes

The sixth-placed PBKS, with three wins and two losses, including a heavy defeat while defending 246 against SRH at Hyderabad, will be taking on KKR, who are placed in fifth place with three wins in six matches, having secured an easy win over Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in their previous match.

Speaking ahead of the game in the pre-match presser, Hopes said as quoted by a PBKS press release, "Ferguson is out indefinitely and the chances of us getting him back by the end of the tournament are very slim, I would have thought. I think he has sustained a pretty serious injury."

Ferguson was forced to leave the field after bowling just two balls against SRH, clutching his left thigh in pain.

Acknowledging the upcoming challenges, with consecutive matches against KKR and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), Hopes said, "We are sitting at 3-2, which is a good spot in the competition, and we have got a big week coming up against the same two opponents, KKR and RCB. That's just the way the schedule has worked out for us. We have got them for the next four games. So if we can have a good week, we are going to be well-placed going into the second half of the tournament."

The coach also assessed the team's performance in the last game and addressed the dropped catches against Hyderabad, saying, "That (last game) was a bit disappointing for us. We knew going into it that it was going to be an extremely high-scoring game. We knew that it was a high-scoring wicket. We got a great score on the board, but then, unfortunately, our inability to take catches that night made the match disappear on us."

Hopes further elaborated on the team's overall fielding performance in the tournament, saying, "I think we have dropped 12 catches in the tournament now... If we had taken those catches, I think we could be sitting here with a four-and-one record, but we cannot do anything other than keep the boys working on it, and keep them trying to improve in the field."

Despite the concerns, Hopes expressed confidence in the potential of key players. He lauded Indian pacer Arshdeep Singh and shared his experience of working with him, "For starters, I am really enjoying working with him. And you are correct, he is a world-class bowler. The only thing that's missing from Arsh presently is a bag full of wickets, which he can get anytime soon...If those chances start going his way, you're going to see the wickets start piling up."

The match between Punjab Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders will take place at the New PCA Stadium, New Chandigarh on April 15, at 7:30 PM.