Kings XI Punjab have had a topsy-turvy time in the VIVO Indian Premier League. From almost claiming the title to failing to even qualify for the play-offs, the Kings’ men have seen it all. However, there have been innumerable instances where the opposition could do little more than watch in awe as Punjab de Puttar turned on the heat. We look back at a few of these times and the men who led the Kings’ charge:

  1. The value of Paul Valthaty (IPL 4)

Chasing a daunting 189 runs to win against Chennai Super Kings, Kings XI got off to a flyer thanks to their dynamic opener Paul Valthaty. His 61-run opening stand with Adam Gilchrist off just 35 balls set the tone for the KXIP chase. The young man showed great maturity by anchoring the innings and staying till the end to take the Kings home. His 120 run-effort included 19 fours and two massive sixes.

  1. David Miller’s killer blow (IPL 6)

One of the most memorable run chases for the Kings came in Chandigarh against Royal Challengers Bangalore. Their bowlers had conceded 190 and the batsmen were quickly reduced to 64/4 at the halfway stage.

However, still on the crease was Killer Miller who famously said, “If the ball is in my arc, it will go out of the park.” He started to belt the ball to all parts of the ground. With 94 needed from 40 balls, Miller started to tear into Vinay Kumar before offering a skier to Virat Kohli on the last ball of the over. But Kohli dropped the catch and with that the match as Miller raced to his 100 and took the game away from Bangalore.

  1. Glenn Maxwell deals in maximums (IPL 7)

‘See the ball; hit the ball’ has always been Maxwell's motto. In a game against CSK at Cuttack, one of the home grounds for Kings XI during the 2014 season, he was impressive, scoring 90 from 38 balls and sharing a 135-run stand with David Miller for the third wicket. With six fours and eight maximums, one can see Maxwell's only intention was to clear the boundary. KXIP finished with 231/4 which was way too much for CSK.

  1. Dimitri Mascarenhas’ fiver (IPL 5)

One normally associated the Punjab de Munde with big batting performances. But all that changed in Mohali against Pune Warriors. After winning the toss and electing to bowl on a surface that had some grass, KXIP ran riot, courtesy their English all-rounder Dimitri Mascarenhas. Mascarenhas weaved his magic by picking up Sourav Ganguly and Marlon Samuels in the space of four balls, eventually ending with figures of 4-0-25-5. The Kings’ men restricted Pune to a paltry 115 and Shaun Marsh's unbeaten 64 sealed the deal for Punjab with seven wickets and 14 balls to spare.

  1. A Stoinis special (IPL 9)

In a season which was not amongst their best, KXIP were against the powerhouse of Mumbai Indians. The pitch was supposed to be slow and low, but the Lions from Punjab were up for it. Sandeep Sharma set the tone before Marcus Stoinis came up with four critical strikes to break the back of the Mumbai batting order. His economy rate was less than four against a Mumbai batting order which boasted of big hitters like Kieron Pollard. Eventually, MI were restricted to 124/9 which KXIP chased with three overs to go.