New Delhi, March 9: The Indian Premier League has been a roller-coaster ride for Kings XI Punjab. After a semifinal appearance in the inaugural edition of the IPL, the injury-hit Chandigarh-based franchise slipped to fifth in IPL-2, played in South Africa.

With IPL-3 returning to India, paceman Shanthakumaran Sreesanth believes the side had the potential to go all the way this season. “Injuries are always a concern for any team but they are part and parcel of the game. Last year me, Brett Lee and Jerome Taylor were injured and it hampered the team,” Sreesanth told this newspaper on Tuesday.

“This season the team are looking good. Brett is bowling well, Yusuf (Abdullah) is bowling fast and I am starting to find my rhythm. I believe the team can go all the way this time round,” he added. On his own bowling form, the Kerala pacer said, “I had recovered from a serious back injury and starting to bowl well when I was laid low by swine flu. I am fully fit now and started bowling at full tilt. Things are finally starting to look up.”

The 27-year-old knows that performing in IPL will be critical for a berth in the India squad to the World T20 Championship in the West Indies. “IPL is a very important tournament for me. It will be important to keep it tight and bowl well in the final overs since the selectors will be watching us carefully. “I am going to put pressure on myself thinking about something that is not in my control. I will look to take it one match at a time,” he said.

Sreesanth has put his ugly confrontation with Harbhajan Singh in the inaugural IPL behind him and believes he is a much calmer cricket on the field. “I have learned to keep my emotions in check. I spend all my aggression in only bowling fast.” Kings XI are missing the services of their coach Tom Moody till the start of the IPL due to his commitments with the

Western Australia domestic team but the team are not concerned. “We have been training under Trevor Penney, our fielding coach in Moody’s absence. The team is professional and we are having no problems. Moody will be joining us after our first IPL match,” the paceman said.

On what he expects from the third edition of the IPL, he said, “This year the tournament is going to be brilliant since it is coming back to India. We can expect packed houses for every match and our team will be playing a couple of matches in Dharmshala. So we have something more to look forward to.”