New Delhi: Shreyas Iyer was overjoyed after leading Punjab Kings (PBKS) to a memorable 16-run victory against his former team Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 on Tuesday, April 16. PBKS scripted history by defending 111 runs, the lowest ever in IPL history. Iyer was left speechless as he lauded the bowlers for the incredible victory.
Yuzvendra Chahal and Marcos Jansen turned out to be the heroes for Punjab Kings in the low-scoring thriller as the duo picked up seven wickets between them to run through the KKR batting line-up, bunding them out for 95 runs in the 112-run chase. Chahal bowled a game-changing spell and picked up the crucial wickets of Ajinkya Rahane, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Rinku Singh and Ramandeep Singh.
Jansen, on the other hand, struck in the Powerplay to dismiss KKR opener Sunil Narine cheaply on 5 before removing Harshit Rana and the dangerous Andre Russell towards the end of KKR’s run-chase to seal a sensational victory for Punjab Kings. Speaking at the post-match presentation, PBKS skipper Iyer revealed how he plotted the brilliant turnaround with the help of Chahal.
“It is hard to express in words. I was just backing my instincts. I saw the ball turn a bit, asked Yuzi to control his breathing a bit. We needed to be attacking and the right players were in the right places. It is tough to talk right now and such wins make it special,” he told the official broadcaster.
Iyer revealed he had read the uneven bounce on the wicket when he went to bat during Punjab Kings’ innings in Mullanpur and suggested his bowlers exploit it during KKR’s run chase. He credited his bowlers for executing their plans well and said two wickets in the first two overs in the Powerplay were the key. Iyer also lauded Chahal, who broke the 55-run stand between Rahane and Raghuvanshi for the 3rd wicket to turn the game in Punjab’s favour.
“Two wickets in two overs (in the Powerplay) that gave us that kind of momentum and the two batters came in and took the momentum towards them. When we saw Yuzi came in and turn the ball, our hopes and expectations were higher and I wanted the field to be attacking and right in front of their face so that they make mistakes and the tide turned towards us,” Iyer added.
Punjab Kings climb to 4th spot
Iyer-led Punjab Kings climbed to the fourth spot on the IPL 2025 points table after their stunning victory against Kolkata Knight Riders at home. PBKS have been playing exceptionally well under Iyer’s leadership and have made a strong start to the season with four wins in six matches. They lost their last game against Sunrisers Hyderabad by 8 wickets after failing to defend 245 runs but bounced back to beat KKR by defending 111 runs against the three-time champions.
Punjab Kings (PBKS) skipper Shreyas Iyer was left speechless after his team defended the lowest total in IPL history to hand Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) a shock 16-run defeat in IPL 2025. IPL Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
