Shreyas Iyer’s Heroics Propel Punjab Kings to IPL Final

Shreyas Iyer had a stunning performance with the bat making 87 not out. His brilliant performances led the Punjab Kings to their first IPL final in 11 years. Here’s how the game played out on [date], when the match pitted them against the Mumbai Indians. Iyer’s blistering batting sealed India a remarkable five-wicket win with an over to go.

The Punjab Kings were set a daunting target of 204 runs. They would have to run down the Mumbai Indians’ 203 runs in 20 overs to win the championship. Iyer’s innings—built around eight gigantic sixes and a strike rate of over 200—was central to chasing down the target. He was left needing 23 from the last two so-called death overs. In a brilliant exhibition of batting, he hit four sixes in the 19th over alone to bring the match home against Mumbai.

Tilak Varma and Suryakumar Yadav were prolific in the middle overs, helping the Mumbai Indians post 200 with 44 runs each. It was Iyer’s herculean effort with the bat that really changed the game for Punjab Kings. In addition to Brook’s monumental innings, Jonny Bairstow played a crucial hand, scoring 38 runs off 24 deliveries. In reply, Punjab Kings went on to score a lofty 207 runs for the loss of five wickets in 19 overs.

Azmatullah was the pick of the bowlers for Punjab, taking 2-43 against a strong Mumbai batting order. Mumbai’s Naman Dhir scored 37 runs off 18 balls, but it came too late for his team to win its final match.

Iyer’s confidence and composure were evident on the biggest stage during this high-pressure clash. Here’s what he said about his mentality going into the final outing, …

“I always say to myself and to my colleagues in the team that the bigger the occasion, the calmer you are, you get the big results.” – Shreyas Iyer

In hindsight, it was Iyer’s leadership and miraculous batting performance that guided the Punjab Kings. Perhaps even more importantly, this win served as a historical inflection point for the franchise. The team will now set their sights on the final, where they’ll try to win their first IPL crown.