Shreyas Iyer led from the front on his captaincy debut for Punjab Kings in their IPL 2025 opener against Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad on Tuesday, 25 March. Stranded on 97 in the final over, Shreyas had the chance to push for his hundred but selflessly chose not to demand the strike from his batting partner, Shashank Singh. Instead, he encouraged Shashank to go big in the last six deliveries. Punjab Kings capitalised on the late onslaught, posting their second-highest total in IPL history-243 for 5-after a breathtaking finish. |
Shashank Singh took apart Mohammed Siraj in the final over, hammering 23 runs. He retained the strike throughout, focusing on maximising the team’s total rather than Shreyas’s personal milestone.
Speaking to broadcasters after his batting heroics, Shashank revealed that Shreyas had urged him before the over to forget about the hundred and focus on clearing the ropes. Shashank followed the advice to perfection, smashing five boundaries and running a double.
As the innings ended, Shreyas Iyer patted Shashank on the back, showing no signs of disappointment at missing his century – only pride in his team’s performance.
“Yes, it was a good cameo. But looking at Shreyas, that motivated me even more. Let me be very honest: Shreyas, from ball one, said don’t worry about my hundred,” Shashank Singh said.
“Just watching the ball and reacting to it. I try and make sure I get the boundaries. When you go at that number, it’s more likely that you’ll not get a good hit. I know the shots I can back. I focus on my strengths rather than things which I can’t do,” the PBKS star said, reflecting on his 16-ball 44.
Punjab Kings walked the talk, being aggressive with the bat from the get go in their IPL 2025 opener at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
