On April 24, the day before the match between Delhi Capitals and Punjab Kings, Priyansh Arya is being chased for selfies by fans in Khan Market, a popular shopping area in New Delhi. While he obliges a few, the crowd starts to swell, so Arya has to quickly retreat to his car. Until about a year ago, he could easily stroll in public spaces unrecognised, but his exploits in the IPL since the 2025 season have now made him a familiar face. The left-hand opener has given his team, Punjab Kings, blazing starts, including a 17-ball 43 in the game against Delhi Capitals.
A few days earlier, playing at PBKS' home base in New Chandigarh, Arya scored a 37-ball 93. He also has a 16-ball fifty this season against Sunrisers Hyderabad, and last IPL blitzed a 39-ball century against Chennai Super Kings. Arya spoke about that hundred, how he has been shaping his batting mindset, and the people who are helping him grow as a batter.
You made a 16-ball fifty this season. Last season, your 39-ball hundred against CSK was then the fastest IPL century by an uncapped batter and the fourth fastest overall. Punjab Kings head coach Ricky Ponting said at the start of IPL 2025 that you were a batter to watch out for and you proved him right.
When I met Ponting sir for the first time ahead of last season, he told me one thing: "Don't try to impress me in the nets." It is natural that you want to do well the first time you have someone like him around. You end up taking on added pressure and instead of doing well, sometimes it can turn bad. So he told me to just bat naturally, both in the nets and in the match, and that has helped me.
Did you want to impress him?
Not really. But when he said that I felt that, yes, that could happen, it's my first season and I would be thinking of doing well. But he normalised things straightaway in our first meeting itself.
That innings against CSK showcased your mindset and your batting skills. Has your batting temperament been like that since you started?
Yes, I get joy playing shots. Obviously you have to play the situation in a match, but I had belief in myself that I can pull the team out of a [tough] situation by playing my natural game. That is what helped me in the match and we won the game and I got the century.
So you liked to hit sixes from a young age?
Actually, after finishing playing at the Under-19 level, I started to hit more sixes. I used to bat one-down or two-down in domestic cricket for Delhi at the Under-19 level. In Under-23 there was no place in the Delhi squad because there were a lot of seniors and I was too young. One of the selectors asked me, "Opening kar lega?" [Will you open?] I said I have no problem, I just want to play, I will do it. Since then I became an opener. And when I look at the powerplay, I feel I can hit aaram se [with ease].
Did any batter's approach to batting in the powerplay influence you when you were growing up?
Not exactly. I used to enjoy watching Yuvraj Singh, but he wasn't an opener. [Currently] I enjoy watching Abhishek Sharma, Vaibhav [Sooryavanshi], [Yashasvi] Jaiswal, because their manner of batting gives me confidence. It allows me to think I can also bat that way, and I do.
In the CSK match, the bowlers you took on included Matheesha Pathirana, who you hit for three sixes. He is a bowler who takes wickets at the death, whose bowling batters struggle to read. Can you talk about how you read him?
I was playing Pathirana for the first time. I was batting on about 75 or 76 [80]. First ball, he bowled a wide-yorker type delivery, which I sliced. I like a bowler to bowl to me there and he did exactly that, and I hit it over point for six. I knew that he would bowl [the next ball] within the stumps and he did that, so I hit it over midwicket for six. You have to be one step ahead of the bowler in your planning because the bowler is thinking the same about the batter.
What was the approximate speed of that first ball you sliced over point for six?
Must have been around 145 kph.
Some can't even make contact with the bat against that speed, so how do you practise against such pace?
You shorten the wicket length so you can face deliveries at higher pace. You place the stumps at 18 yards. You also face plastic balls, wet balls and all other stuff that have become common.
You also hit R Ashwin for runs in the same match. Ashwin is a bowler who usually grasps the batter's plans in time. Can you talk about that one-on-one contest?
He would have obviously known my intention. He is a legend of Indian cricket. I got a lot of confidence when I hit him for runs, that I had hit sixes against India's best offspinner.
You hit him for a first-ball six. Did you plan to do that beforehand?
Yes, it was pre-planned. Because the square-leg fielder was in the circle and he was bowling in the powerplay. I wanted to play risk-free by just going over the 30-yard circle and not exactly clearing the boundary. But in that attempt I cleared the boundary.
At one point you exposed all your stumps and yet managed to hit him over cover for four. Was that pre-planned, too?
Yes, I hit a six over covers. He had pushed the midwicket and long-on back, so I thought he would be bowling within the stumps and so decided to make room for myself.
Though it was your first IPL season, you read bowlers' plans well. Where did you learn to do that?
Our [PBKS] analyst Saurabh Walkar helps me a lot. I keep asking him about every bowler. He tells me about where the bowler delivers in different phases, where he pitches during death, how he bowls with the new ball, how he imparts swing, when he goes short of a length, so having that knowledge about a bowler is helpful going into a match.
After the CSK match, their head coach, Stephen Fleming, said about you: "When batsmen at the other end are faltering, it's pretty special to go out and create the innings yourself, and that was what he was doing for a majority of the game." PBKS lost five wickets in the first eight overs, but that didn't stop you.
Like I said, if I can play my game I can take the team out of this situation, and that is what happened. Pressure, obviously, is always there and was there, but I had belief in myself. It was one of the best innings of my life.
In an interview last year, you said that you used a new bat against CSK since you did not get enough runs in the first three matches. What was that about?
Yes, I went into that match with a proper new bat. I played 17 matches last season. I had taken about five to six new bats - all were fresh and I had not even played with them in the nets. I only gave them to Brad sir [Haddin, PBKS assistant coach] to hit with them for the fielding drills before taking them to the match.
You hit six sixes in the Delhi Premier League, which put you in the limelight and played a role in you getting an IPL contract. Did doing that give you the confidence to face top bowlers and bowling attacks in the IPL?
That innings gave me a lot of confidence because very few have hit six sixes. I know many have the ability to hit six sixes, but it is not always possible because the bowler can deny you that feat by delivering even one good ball. That day perhaps my timing was very good and that put pressure on the bowler but it gave me the confidence that I can hit a spinner as well as a pacer.
When did you decide that you were going for the record?
After I'd hit four sixes, I knew that I could hit the remaining balls for two [more] sixes. I have preserved that bat at home and have not used it since that innings because hitting six sixes is rare - once in a lifetime - so I thought I should save that bat.
In the match before you scored that century against CSK, you were dismissed for a first-ball duck by Jofra Archer. Can you talk about that delivery, which went from leg to top of off at 144.6kph?
I was facing him for the first time. In his run-up he was coming in very easily, but when he snapped his wrist to deliver the ball, I realised I was a bit late in getting ready and I was not able to judge the ball well. Obviously, the ball was very good, but I don't wish to describe that delivery so it doesn't come to my mind [again]. Once such a thing has happened, it has happened. Thinking about that will only put pressure on me. If you play with one thought, it is good, but if you have many thoughts, you will not be able to play your natural game.
My coach from [my youth], Sanjay sir [Sanjay Bharadwaj] always said that [you should] focus on the future, forget what has happened, whether you make runs or not. That has helped me keep my mental balance.
This IPL you have been going strong again and already won player of the match against CSK again. But can you talk about your reaction after you got out in the last two matches - against CSK and then against SRH?
Against CSK, I don't how or why I played that kind of shot - I don't even attempt it in the nets, still I played it in the match. I don't know how but a thought came to my mind to step out and I did that. I never step out against fast bowlers. I'm not sure how that happened, whether it was instinctive. Even Ponting sir pointed out, "I have never seen you like this." He said that in a normal way. I could have stayed at the crease and played the same shot I was attempting. But ho gaya, koi nahin." [It's okay, it happens]
Even in the last match - against SRH - it was not really a wicket-taking delivery, so I was disappointed. I wanted to hit straight but the bat face turned.
Your numbers in terms of strike rate and boundary count are the best in the first ten balls for players in the IPL. Do you agree the first ten balls are very important?
Yes, it is very important, not just for myself but even for the team, because the powerplay is only six overs, so it is not like I can take my time. We were chasing 200-plus targets in the last two matches. So I think on the lines of making as many runs as possible in the powerplay for the team.
Is there more pressure now on the opening batters - that you must mandatorily go at a high tempo in powerplay?
It is according to the wicket. If it is a slow and turning wicket, even 45 can be good enough as long as you have wickets in hand. And if there is pressure on us then the same pressure is also there on the bowler.
Can you talk about Ponting and Shreyas Iyer and what kind of chats they have had with you and how each of them has helped you understand and grow in your game?
I have never heard a negative word come from either. However bad the match might have gone for us, not a single negative has been uttered by both of them. That helps a lot in terms of team bonding. In the first match this season, I got out playing the pull shot. Ponting sir told me, don't stop playing the pull. Because I was thinking [about avoiding playing it]. But he told me, you have to play this shot because it is your scoring shot. So in the next match I hit two or three sixes off the pull. It gives you the confidence when such a big coach comes and tells you to be fearless and have belief in yourself.
The same thing applies to Shreyas bhaiya. Last year after I got out on the first ball [against RR], he asked me "Kya soch raha tha tu?" [What were you thinking?] I told him that since I was playing Jofra for the first time, I should watch at least one ball. He then said, "Pehli ball par chakka mar sakta hain?" [Can you hit a six off the first ball?] I said yes. He said "Toh, mar na phir. [So hit it] In our next match, against CSK, I hit a first-ball six. Shreyas bhaiya said, you will play all 14 matches, you don't worry.
How has life at home changed for you and your family?
We have bought a house. Earlier we used to stay in government apartments on rent, as my mummy and papa are teachers. But now I have bought a house in mummy's name. I feel really proud.
Most young players make the jump to the IPL through the Under-19 pathway, but you didn't play the Under-19 World Cup and even went unsold at the 2024 IPL auction. Now you're being talked about as a potential India player. Can you talk about the emotion of all that has happened?
I did not feel [bad] about not playing the Under-19 World Cup because I had not played Under-19 for the state [Delhi]. As per BCCI rules, a player who has not played Under-16 can only play for two years at Under-19 level. I had not played for Under-16 and Under-14 for the state and directly played for Under-19. I was not even in the scheme of things as far as selection for the Under-19 World Cup was concerned.
Yes, I was hurt when I went unsold at the IPL auction for the 2024 season. But another opportunity came in the form of the DPL, where I told myself I want to become the player of the tournament. I thought about becoming the leading run-maker in DPL that season and that is what happened and that is what helped me in making the IPL team. So DPL has played a big role.
Do you play to enjoy or play to perform and enjoy?
[If you enjoy yourself] as much as you possibly can, then you will perform more. My only goal is to make the team win and become champions. If I think about personal goals then I feel you could let the team down. If we think about winning the IPL then the team will do well and you will also.