PBKS coach Ricky Ponting praises skipper Shreyas’s match-winning 72 knock vs CSK; says his leadership and strong desire for success is lifting team’s momentum
Shreyas Iyer. Pic/AFP
Punjab Kings head coach Ricky Ponting has praised skipper Shreyas Iyer for his match-winning knock against Chennai Super Kings in the IPL match here on Wednesday.
Punjab picked up a crucial win over CSK with skipper Shreyas Iyer leading the 191-run chase. After electing to bowl, CSK rode on Sam Curran’s 47-ball 88 to post a mammoth total of 190 on a slow, turning track.
Captain’s knock
Iyer then played a captain’s knock, scoring 72 runs in 41 balls to set up the win for his side. Aided by opener Prabhsimran Singh, who also scored 54 runs, Punjab finished off the chase with two balls to spare to win the match by four wickets.
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Ricky Ponting
Ponting explained how the Indian cricketer has grown as a captain over the years. “Shreyas started this tournament in a form that I’ve never seen him in before. Today’s [Wednesday] innings is one of the reasons that I was so keen to get him here as our captain. I know how good a player he is. I know how good a leader he is. And I know how hungry he is for success. And I think he proved that to everybody tonight. It was never going to be an easy run chase. It was a great run chase from us,” the former Aussie international said.
Further praising Iyer as a captain, Ponting explained how his influence inspires the rest of the dressing room. “If you look at him now, you just look at him in the eye, you can tell that he is really hungry for success. He has just got that look in his eye where he knows he is the leader of this team. He wants to bring success to this team and this franchise and the way that he is playing, does not look like he is going to let anything get in the way of that. That is a great attitude for a leader to have, because that rubs off on everybody else around him,” he said.
Meanwhile, Iyer has been hit with a fine after his team was found guilty of maintaining a slow over-rate against CSK.
Shreyas fined Rs 12 lakh
lyer was fined R12 lakh as this was Punjab’s first over-rate offence in IPL 2025 under the tournament’s code of conduct. Punjab were also forced to bring in an extra fielder inside the circle before the start of the 19th over.
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