Shreyas Iyer-led team Punjab Kings have been displaying their batting masterclass throughout this season; However, despite a fast start, PBKS managed to put up a fighting total for their side against the Rajasthan Royals attack, which did not allow them to dominate in the mid overs.

The Punjab Kings returned to their stadium at Mullanpur in New Chandigarh, which has been their home ground since the last season. Punjab Kings are coming off an impressive win at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in the last game where they broke their own record of successful run chase while chasing a mammoth target of 265 runs.

Having maintained their unbeaten streak, the Shreyas Iyer-led team is currently at the top of the points table, just 1 point out of 14, which is because the rain gods favor the Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens.

It was the only game that PBKS finished without those 2 points. Last season’s runners-up are just one victory away from securing their place in the top four and, hence, the playoffs for this edition of the competition.

Marcus Stoinis massacre helps Punjab Kings flourish in promising finish

Priyansh Arya, the left-handed batsman, has been a dangerous striker in the powerplay, often hitting over 250 in the boundaries. However, on this occasion, he struggled with lethal fast bowler Jofra Archer, who also dismissed him after a 29-run 10-ball cameo.

Prabhsimrah Singh looked good as he scored another half-century, adding runs to the Kings unit, while Cooper Connolly also played a handy knock of 30. With captain Shreyas Iyer struggling in the middle over, his scoreline fell short of the projected total.

However, Marcus Stoinis, promoted in the absence of Shashank Singh, played a good knock in his first major outing for the Kings. Stonis badly bowled the likes of Nandre Burger, Jofra Archer and Brijesh Sharma in the last three overs and took his team to a solid 222 in their 20 overs.

Too many missed sides for PBKS bowlers as Punjab Kings face first defeat of the season

Punjab Kings have been an exceptional batting team in this edition of the competition and could therefore maintain their winning streak so far this season. However, they have suffered their first defeat of the season, ending their streak of six consecutive victories.

Shreyas Iyer’s team struggled to keep the runs flowing in the powerplay, with youngster Vaibhav Sooryavanshi racking up plenty of runs in the powerplay. Even after his dismissal, Yashasvi Jaiswal continued the attack with the bat.

Punjab Kings spinners Harpreet Brar and Yuzvendra Chahal helped them seal the middle overs by dismissing three batsmen and also did not leak a huge number of runs. However, the pace bowling trio leaked too many runs with Arshdeep Singh leaking the most runs.

Donovan Ferriera finished the chase in some style and was named player of the match for his winning half-century. However, impact player Shubham Dubey also backed him up excellently with 31 runs off just 12 balls.

‘Congratulations to the batsmen’, Shreyas Iyer praised the RR batsmen for their impressive innings.

“I thought 224 on the board was a brilliant score. Kudos to the batsmen, the way they came up and took on the bowlers. I think it was an exceptional performance, especially on this wicket, which was a bit sticky and slow,” said PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer.

“And I think we came up a little short in our bowling, in terms of execution. We had planned to bowl a lot slower, with pace and yorkers. I think we came up a little short there. And also, they had a tremendous partnership in the middle, especially when Ferreira and Shubham Dubey came in and scored those crucial runs at the end,” he added.

“I think it’s important that we stick to the things that we’ve been doing, the routines and the processes that we’ve followed throughout. We had one game, we had to travel and then come and play another game.”

“So I think the body was also a little fatigued, but that can’t be the reason here. But we have a couple of days to freshen up, go back to the drawing board and come back strong,” he said of what could get them back on the winning path.

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