Punjab Kings rediscovered their winning touch after six losses in a row through captain Shreyas Iyer’s majestic unbeaten 101, as they handed Lucknow Super Giants a seven-wicket thrashing to stay alive in the IPL playoffs race in Lucknow on Saturday, May 23.
Shreyas, whose maiden IPL hundred came off 51 balls, and Prabhsimran Singh (69 off 39 balls) added 140 runs for the third wicket as Punjab chased down LSG’s 196 for two in 18 overs. PBKS made 200 for three.
The victory helped Punjab reach 15 points from their 14 league engagements and reclaim the No. 4 position on the table.
But now they will have to endure an excruciating wait to know their fate, as the Rajasthan Royals (14) take on the Mumbai Indians on Sunday, May 24 in Mumbai.
If RR win the
match, Punjab will enter the playoffs as the fourth-placed team with 16 points.
The Kolkata Knight Riders (13 points), who are up against Delhi Capitals in the weekend’s second clash, also have an outside chance should RR fail to get past MI.
In that case, it will be a battle of net run rate between KKR and PBKS, with both tied on 15 points. Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Gujarat Titans are already in the knockouts.
But the equation worries are for another time, as Shreyas showed his steely nerves while chasing yet again with a fabulous knock.
Opener Priyansh Arya fell for a first-ball duck to Mohammad Shami (2/45), and the veteran India pacer uprooted Cooper Connolly’s off-stump as PBKS plunged into turmoil.
But Shreyas was least bothered by those early setbacks and, as expected, lorded over spinners and pacers alike with drives, pulls and his trademark flicks off the pads.
He was severe on spinner Digvesh Rathee, scorching him for a flurry of on-side boundaries, and Prabhsimran, who got reprieves on 20 and 62, backed his leader with aplomb.
Prabhsimran reached his sixth fifty of the season off 26 balls, while his senior partner reached that mark in 33 balls.
Once he crossed fifty, Shreyas wore the cape of an enforcer, with his next 51 runs coming off just 18 balls.
The dismissal of Prabhsimran, who fell leg before to left-arm pacer Arjun Tendulkar, was a minor aberration as Punjab reached the target with ease.
Shreyas, who reached his hundred with a six off Mohsin Khan that also signalled PBKS’ win, also pummelled Shami for three sixes in an over to speed his side to victory.
Earlier, Josh Inglis made a typically punishing 72, guiding LSG to a handy 196 for six.
Inglis and Pant (26, 21 balls) added 65 runs for the fourth wicket as the already-eliminated Super Giants recovered from a shaky 69 for three in the seventh over.
Inglis’ 42-ball innings had two phases. The first part featured an opening-over assault on Arshdeep Singh, four fours fetching the Aussie 16 runs.
He then left the stage briefly for Ayush Badoni, who came to the crease after the early dismissals of Arshin Kulkarni, who opened in place of Mitchell Marsh, and Nicholas Pooran.
Badoni took centre stage in some style, making an 18-ball 43 and adding 49 runs for the third wicket with Inglis.
He creamed Azmatullah Omarzai, the No. 1 all-rounder as per ICC rankings, for 24 runs in the fifth over, and the run glut included a sequence of 4, 6, 6, 4.
It helped LSG recover from the early departures of two top-order batters and end the powerplay at a rather fine 66 for two.
But Badoni’s daredevilry ended soon as Prabhsimran effected a smart stumping off Yuzvendra Chahal, and DRS upheld its validity.
However, Inglis woke up from his stupor with a slew of sparkling shots around the ground, and he started the second segment of his innings by smashing a six, four and four in a row off Arshdeep.
In all, Inglis milked Arshdeep for six fours and two sixes, extending the India left-arm pacer’s lean season.
It brought Pant and Inglis together. Pant, who was dropped on 18 by Shreyas at cover off Chahal, was not at his fluent best but stayed there to give some valuable company to Inglis.
The Aussie right-hander reached his fifty in 28 balls but lost the company of Pant, who fell to Chahal (2/25).
Inglis eventually fell to part-timer Shahshank Singh, giving an easy catch to Shreyas, who had stationed himself at a straighter long-on position.
Abdul Samad (37 not out, 20 balls) belted two big hits, but once Mukul Choudhary fell to Marco Jansen (2/33), LSG’s hopes of crossing 200 evaporated.
(With PTI Inputs)
