Following his side’s loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), Punjab Kings (PBKS) skipper Shreyas Iyer was surprised by how fast his opponents managed to chase down a massive target of 246 runs and pointed out that his side’s fielding and over rotation were not up to the mark. Abhishek delivered a record-breaking century, the highest-ever score by an Indian in IPL history, as he and Travis Head, together called ‘Travishek’, finally came alive, stomping over PBKS’s target of 246 runs with eight wickets and nine wickets in hand.
Speaking in the post-match presentation, Iyer said surprisingly about the loss, “I think it was a fantastic total, to be honest. It still makes me laugh that they (SRH) chased it with 2 overs to spare.”
On his team’s errors with fielding and bowling, he said, “We could have taken a few catches, but he (Abhishek) was lucky. He was exceptional. In a nutshell, we did not bowl to our expectations, we have to go to the drawing board and make amends. The opening partnership (between Abhishek and Head) was phenomenal, they did not give us too many opportunities to capitalise. The over-rotation could have been better from our side. (Lockie) Ferguson can give you wickets, but that (injuries) happen.”
“These are the learnings for us going forward. The other bowlers could have done the same though. Myself and Wadhera thought 230 was a good total, but I think the dew made it harder for us (during the second innings.) The way they (SRH openers) batted was out of the world, it (Abhishek’s knock) was one of the best knock I have seen,” he added.
Coming to the match, PBKS won the toss and elected to bat first. A 66-run stand between Priyansh Arya (36 in 13 balls, with two fours and four sixes) and Prabhsimran Singh (42 in 23 balls, with seven fours and a six) started off things well for PBKS. Later, a half-century from skipper Shreyas Iyer (82 in 36 balls, with six fours and six sixes) and a final flourish from Marcus Stoinis (34* in 11 balls, with a four and four sixes) powered PBKS to 245/6 in their 20 overs.
Harshal Patel (4/42) and Eshan Malinga (2/45) were among the wicket-takers for SRH.
In the run-chase of 246 runs, Abhishek (141 in 55 balls, with 14 fours and 10 sixes) and Travis Head (66 in 37 balls, with nine fours and three sixes) started well with a 171-run partnership. After Head was dismissed, Abhishek continued to rage while Heinrich Klaasen (21*) and Ishan Kishan (9*) put some finishing touches, chasing down the mammoth total.
This is also the second-highest run chase in IPL history, with 262 chased by PBKS against defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) last year being at the top. SRH has risen to the eighth spot with two wins and four losses while PBKS is at sixth place, with three wins and two losses.
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