NEW DELHI: Prabhsimran Singh was in the middle of a gym session when the call he had been waiting for finally came. After building consistency with Punjab Kings, the opener earned his first India call-up for the three-match T20I series against Zimbabwe later this month.But before celebrating with anyone else, Prabhsimran rushed home. Waiting there was his father, Sardar Surjit Singh, who struggles with serious health problems and regularly undergoes dialysis. Despite his condition, he rarely misses seeing his son’s games. When Prabhsimran announced the news that he had finally been selected for India, emotions took over.“Kaafi time ke baad aaya hai paaji. Hum sab wait kar rahe the. Waheguru da shukar hai [It has come after a long wait, paaji. We had all been waiting for it. Thank God],” Prabhsimran told TimesofIndia.com in an exclusive interview.“Papa ki tabiyat aisi hai ki woh khud se uth nahi paate [My father’s health is such that he can’t even get up on his own]. But when we told the news, he got up on his own.“If this happiness can improve his health even one percent, it would mean the world to me. Woh bas yahi bol rahe the, ‘Ab ja raha hai to neeche nahi aana.’ Aur bas ek hi baat kahi – ‘Aur mehnat karo [He just kept saying, ‘Now that you’re going, don’t come back down.’ And he told me only one thing: ‘Work even harder]”, I said.
After struggling for consistent opportunities in his early IPL years, his breakthrough came in 2023 when he scored 358 runs, including his maiden IPL century. He followed that up with 334 runs in 2024 before making another jump with back-to-back 500-plus seasons in 2025 and 2026. More importantly, he started converting starts into substantial scores, progressing from a fifty and a century in 2023 to four fifties in 2025 and six fifties in IPL 2026.“I was waiting for this for a long time because before I didn’t have enough opportunities to play. Once I started getting the proper opportunity, I just tried to give my best and things went well. I had two good seasons in a row. So somewhere, I had hope that I had the opportunity in one of the tours. But I didn’t think too much because my mindset has always been the same – whether it’s a district club match or an IPL game, I just want to do well. The IPL is such a big stadium. If you do well here, everything is noticed. I am grateful that I had this opportunity. I just pray that things go well here too,” said Prabhsimran.
The grind never lies
Prabhsimran further strengthened his case after consecutive 500 IPL seasons with India A in Sri Lanka, scoring 97 runs in three matches, including a half-century.He has now been picked as India’s second batsman behind Ishan Kishan, with Sanju Samson surprisingly left out.One of the biggest improvements in Prabhsimran’s game has been his consistency. His aggressive approach to the top has remained unchanged, but in recent seasons he has learned to stay longer at the crease and convert starts into game-winning shots. From 20 to 30 in his early years, he now regularly turns them into fifties, maintaining a strike rate of over 160. When he received his India A jersey, he summed up his journey perfectly with an Instagram post that read: “The grind never lies.”
The aggressive forward, who previously often threw promising starts, has learned to convert into game-winning shots. He hit six fifties in IPL 2026, averaging 42.50 at a strike rate of 168.87, while also hitting 23 sixes.Prabhsimran said the transformation came after realizing that survival at the highest level required much more than explosive starts.“As you know, this is such a big platform. Before, I had the feeling that scoring 25 or 30 runs was a good start before going out. But in the last two years, I had only one thing in mind – if I want to sustain at this level, I need to add something to my game. My focus has been converting those 25s and 30s into bigger scores. Sometimes 25 or 30 runs are important too, but if the team loses, those runs don’t really mean much. My only goal is that whatever run he scores should contribute to the team’s victory. Once I settle down, I think about finishing the game,” said the wicketkeeper-batsman.
Ultimate dream: “India ke liye khelna hai”
Prabhsimran’s journey to Team India took a different path from many of his peers. While players like Shubman Gill, Abhishek Sharma and Arshdeep Singh broke into the national side earlier, the Punjab Kings opener had to wait longer for his opportunity.While his cousin Anmolpreet Singh represented India at the 2016 Under-19 World Cup, Prabhsimran missed out on playing the tournament. Two years later, however, he captained India to the Under-19 Asia Cup title, leading a team featuring Yashasvi Jaiswal, Devdutt Padikkal and Ayush Badoni to a 144-run victory over Sri Lanka in the final.“We have all played together since our childhood cricket days. I am really happy for them. We grew up together. Every time I saw them perform, I always felt that my turn was coming too. We talk whenever they do well. Sometimes I even talk to their parents. We don’t talk much about cricket. Our conversations are mostly about how we are doing and just having fun,” said Prabhsimran.“I am with Arshdeep in Punjab [PBKS]. Sometimes Abhishek also joins us during the domestic season. I shared a good bond with both of them. We also have six hitting contests during practice. You learn a lot from each other.”
For Prabhsimran, everything he had worked for ultimately boiled down to one goal – to represent India.“I always had only one thing in mind – to play for India. When I got the opportunity, it was in the Asia Cup. I was made captain and we also won the tournament. Things kept falling apart gradually. If an opportunity comes, thank God for it. If not, keep waiting for your chance and keep working hard. I have always been a quiet person. My only dream was to represent India. Now I made it to the team. It will be a huge moment if I make my debut. If I do well, I will earn more opportunities,” he said.
Fitness and maintenance has changed everything
Prabhsimran’s improvement in recent seasons is not just about scoring more runs. Apart from becoming a more consistent batsman, he has also taken on the demanding role of wicketkeeper in all formats.Now a regular keeper for Punjab Kings, the 25-year-old believes the additional responsibility has naturally pushed him to improve his fitness. Keeping wickets for an entire IPL season, followed by domestic cricket in all formats, required greater stamina and consistency, something he believes played an equally important role in his development.“Fitness is very important if you want to be consistent. I also keep wickets. I kept wickets throughout the IPL season and also in domestic cricket. So fitness is something you have to work on. The key is to stay consistent in whatever you do, be it practice or training,” said Prabhsimran.“It’s because of wicketkeeping. In domestic cricket, you play one-day matches, T20s and red-ball cricket. It’s a very long season. If you keep wickets regularly, the responsibility becomes even bigger. So I focused even more on my fitness, batting and wicketkeeping. It wasn’t really about losing weight. I was fine even before,” he said.
U Shreyas Iyer and Ricky Ponting effect
Prabhsimran believes that Punjab Kings captain Shreyas Iyer and coach Ricky Ponting have played a major role in his transformation, giving him complete freedom and supporting him to play his natural game.Having been with the Punjab franchise since 2019, he feels his biggest growth came after Iyer took over as captain and Ponting came in as head coach ahead of the 2025 season. The timing also coincided with the most productive phase of his IPL career.
Rather than changing his aggressive approach, the support of the team management helped him trust him for longer and convert promising starts into substantial innings.“When Shreyas became the captain of the Punjab Kings, he spoke to me. He told me only one thing: ‘I will give you complete freedom.’ Don’t think there’s a problem if you go out and play your shot.” When a captain gives you that kind of freedom, you can really back your game. He also told me that I have been with the franchise for a long time and should see myself as a senior player. He said, “You have my full support. You just have to turn your own game,” Prabhsimran said.Prabhsimran also recalled the call he got from Ponting after being retained by Punjab Kings.“When Shashank and I were retained, Mr Ponting called us. The biggest thing that stuck with me was when he said, ‘I’m a good player, but I can become an even better player.’ It’s been two years and my consistency has also improved. He played a big role in it. He also tells me that if he goes out to play a particular shot, it is not a problem. Next time, play that shot again with the same confidence. And if you get out because of a poor shot, you work on it and turn it into a productive option,” he said.
Learn from Yuvraj Singh
Prabhsimran also credits former Indian Yuvraj Singh for playing a significant role in his development, both on and off the field.For him, Yuvraj is just a phone call away whenever he needs advice, be it on cricket or life. As his game has evolved over the last two IPL seasons and his consistency has improved, Prabhsimran has continued to lean on the former Indian star to guide him.“Paaji obviously played a huge role. It’s very important to have people who can guide you. Whenever any of us – be it me, Abhishek or any other actor – get some free time, we can always call Paaji. If we need practice, he will arrange it himself. His role was immense. It also explains how you can take your game a step further,” he said.After receiving his first call-up to India, Yuvraj was among the first people Prabhsimran informed.“He was very happy. He said that the moment we were waiting for so long had finally arrived. Now the only thing left is to work even harder. I told him, “Paaji is busy now. I will work with him when he is free,” said Prabhsimran.