Shreyas Iyer rarely shows much outward emotion. So when he punched the night sky after launching the winning six – a blow that also completed his first IPL century – you knew the innings meant something. His unbeaten 102 off 58 balls, shared with a lively 140-run stand alongside Prabhsimran Singh, carried Punjab Kings past Lucknow Super Giants with 12 balls unused and, just about, kept the playoff door ajar.
“It’s a surreal feeling, especially when you finish off the game and you score a century,” he said afterwards. “I think all the batsmen, they dream of that, and today was one of those days where I personally felt super from within. I was in a great mind space. I knew what I wanted, I knew how the wicket was playing, kind of reading all this situation, it helped me to score my runs. And also the partnership was crucial. I think that creates the momentum in the game and just to win it from there, I’m seriously elated.”
The mathematics remain awkward. Punjab now need Mumbai Indians to beat Rajasthan Royals on the final night, and by a margin wide enough to protect PBKS’s own net run-rate. After six victories on the spin were followed, bizarrely, by six defeats, Iyer admitted relief as much as joy. “We’d spoken about freeing ourselves up, no meetings, just turn up and play,” he revealed. The message landed.
Ricky Ponting has been a believer since the auction. “Well, there was a reason I spent as much money at the auction as I did on him a couple of years ago,” the head coach reminded reporters. “Look, he’s a ripping guy. He’s a very mature player now, he’s a very mature leader. More often than not, keeps his emotions in check when he’s out in the field, but the respect he has from his players is almost second to none. The moment that he stands in front of the group and speaks, not a single eyeball leaves a single word that he says. I’m delighted to work with him … I really think there’s a bigger, a brighter future for him and the Indian T20 team as well.”
Ponting’s praise is echoed elsewhere. Former India batter Ambati Rayudu, in commentary duty, turned his attention to the other end of Punjab’s performance – the bowling. Arshdeep Singh leaked 47 from four overs and has only eleven wickets in the campaign. Rayudu’s verdict was blunt: Arshdeep looks “tired” with the T20 World Cup and IPL back-to-back. Lucknow’s new-ball approach suggested they sensed weariness too, twice lofting him over the leg side powerplay cordon.
Mark Boucher, Punjab’s director of cricket, backed the left-armer but accepted there is an issue. The South African felt Arshdeep is “trying too hard” with the new ball, forcing the swing rather than letting it happen. For context, the white Kookaburra often refuses to move more than a couple of overs; chasing exaggerated movement can drag the length into the slot. Boucher hinted a shorter run-up and a simpler plan might appear if Punjab do sneak into the eliminator.
Back to the batting, the night belonged to Iyer and Prabhsimran. The opener played the senior role early, clearing the in-field with minimal fuss, and later joked that his partner reminded him “it takes two to tango”. Once settled, Iyer’s footwork – particularly the shimmy across off stump to target the short leg-side boundary – looked as measured as anything he produced in last year’s ODI World Cup.
Statistically, it was Punjab’s quickest hundred partnership of the season and arrived against a Lucknow attack that entered the game with the tournament’s lowest economy rate. Krunal Pandya and Ravi Bishnoi conceded just 44 in eight overs between them, yet Iyer’s calmness against the seamers meant the spinners’ control never translated into real pressure.
Where does it leave the Kings? For now, in the hands of others. A playoff spot would complete a tidy two-year arc under Iyer: champions in 2024, runners-up last term, and now clinging on after a roller-coaster group phase. Even if the campaign ends here, the leadership question appears settled. Ponting, usually light on personal endorsements, could hardly have been clearer.
And Iyer? He exited the presentation still smiling, but almost immediately slipped back into his poker-faced default. A brief nod to supporters in the stands, a handshake with LSG coach Rahul Dravid, and then away down the tunnel. It was, in his understated way, the loudest statement he could make.
