“Being retained by Kings XI, it's an absolute honour. I really enjoyed my time there and had so much fun. It's a really fun franchise to be involved in and obviously we want to continue to compete on the field,” revealed a visibly elated Chris Jordan in an interview with the Circle of Cricket.

The 32-year-old pacer was one of the three overseas players to be retained by the franchise ahead of the 2021 Dream11 Indian Premier League auctions which are to be held next month. With that retention, Chris Jordan is now all set to play his fifth season in the IPL.

“We were a very watchable team last year but ultimately we do play this game to win things and hopefully we can go a couple of steps further and lift this trophy for all the fans back in Punjab this year. So yeah I am really looking forward to having another season and hopefully we can continue to put in some brilliant performances,” said Jordan in the same interview.

“I have always watched the team from afar and thought that it looks a real fun franchise to be involved in and so it was in IPL 2020. Along with being fun, I think there is a real focus to try and win the IPL. I think Anil [Kumble] and Andy [Flower] and the entire management staff – their drive and focus is to not only compete but really want to win and they are really starting to create a real winning mentality amongst the group,” added the fast bowler.

Chris Jordan became England’s leading wicket-taker in T20 Internationals a few months back, usurping Stuart Broad’s record when his team toured South Africa post the 2020 IPL. He has also played in franchise competitions across the world, with over 200 T20 games under his belt, carving a niche for himself as a death overs specialist.

Jordan performed admirably in the Indian Premier League too for Kings XI Punjab, picking up nine wickets in nine games for the franchise. The 32-year-old was instrumental in his team’s wins over Sunrisers Hyderabad and Mumbai Indians, bowling clinical overs at the death on both occasions. The franchise have reprised their faith in the muscular fast bowler by retaining him for IPL 2021, and Jordan too would be optimistic to put in a shift for the team yet again when the cricketing carnival kicks off once again a few months from now.