‘Sent Message to Shreyas’: Ponting on Iyer’s Masterstroke vs GT
3 days ago | 5 Views
Punjab Kings secured a narrow victory by 11 runs in their inaugural match of the 2025 Indian Premier League against Gujarat Titans on Tuesday evening. Shreyas Iyer, the captain of PBKS, delivered an impressive performance at the Narendra Modi Stadium, scoring an unbeaten 97 runs off just 42 balls, while also making strategic captaincy decisions that helped the Kings start their campaign with a win.
The PBKS set a formidable target of 244 runs for the Titans, who posed a significant threat during the middle overs, with Sai Sudharsan and Jos Buttler aggressively attacking the bowlers. A pivotal moment in the match came with the introduction of Vijaykumar Vyshak as an impact substitute; in his first two overs, Vyshak conceded only 10 runs, putting the Titans in a challenging position.
Despite giving away 18 runs in the second-to-last over, the right-arm bowler had already created a difficult scenario, leaving the Titans needing 27 runs from the final six deliveries.
Ricky Ponting, the head coach of PBKS, disclosed that it was Shreyas Iyer who suggested bringing Vyshak in as an impact substitute. In his post-match address to the team, Ponting highlighted the significance of the substitution and praised both Iyer and Vyshak.
“I was observing the situation, and they needed 13-14 runs per over. I reached out to Shreyas to ask for his input, and he immediately responded, suggesting we send Vyshak in. He’ll execute a couple of overs with Yorkers, and we’ll secure the win. You were the one who turned the game around, so congratulations,” Ponting remarked in the dressing room.
Vyshak began his IPL journey with Royal Challengers Bengaluru in 2023 and continued with them in the subsequent season. However, he was not retained by the franchise and was later acquired by PBKS for INR 1.80 crore.
PBKS face LSG next
Punjab Kings are set to maintain their winning streak as they prepare to compete against the Lucknow Super Giants in an away match in Lucknow on April 1.
The Super Giants have had a challenging beginning to the season, suffering a narrow one-wicket loss to the Delhi Capitals earlier this week.
Get the latest Bollywood entertainment news, trending celebrity news, latest celebrity news, new movie reviews, latest entertainment news, latest Bollywood news, and Bollywood celebrity fashion & style updates!
