Connolly struck an unbeaten 72 off 44 balls and held his nerve in a chase of 163 after PBKS suffered a middle-order wobble. \u201cI woke up in the morning with a little bit of nerves, which I was really happy about, but yeah, I was really looking forward to getting out there and playing my part the best I can. <\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cRicky Ponting just kept me calm and collected. He told me to play my game, go out there and dominate. It was a nice team performance. We were very strong with the ball and made things easier for ourselves. It was a really good day for us. <\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cI was looking forward to spending time out in the middle with Shreyas Iyer and just sort of picking his brains a little bit. He\u2019s a world-class player. I\u2019ve played a little bit of cricket with him for Australia A and Australia. He is a great player for a reason, and hopefully, I can learn as much as I can,\u201d said Connolly on JioHotstar. <\/p>\r\n\r\n
Connolly\u2019s successful debut for PBKS carried similarities of how his childhood hero Shaun Marsh fared in his very first IPL game. Both began their IPL journeys with PBKS, marked their first appearance with half-centuries, and came in successful run chases. Both stayed unbeaten to see their side home, and were named Player of the Match for their efforts. <\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cI was looking forward to spending time out in the middle with Shreyas Iyer and just sort of picking his brains a little bit. He\u2019s a world-class player. I\u2019ve played a little bit of cricket with him for Australia A and Australia. He is a great player for a reason, and hopefully, I can learn as much as I can,\u201d said Connolly on JioHotstar. <\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cI looked up to him as a mentor and an idol and really enjoyed spending some time with him. It\u2019s nice to be among the runs. There are still plenty of games to go and I am really looking forward to the rest of the tournament,\u201d he added. <\/p>\r\n\r\n