‘I spent big money on Shreyas Iyer for a reason’: Ricky Ponting after PBKS revive playoff hopes
Shreyas Iyer's maiden IPL century powered Punjab Kings to a crucial seven-wicket victory, keeping their playoff hopes alive. Head coach Ricky Ponting lauded Iyer's leadership and temperament, highlighting his significant investment in the player. The win, ending a six-match losing streak, now sees PBKS await other results to determine their playoff fate.
Punjab Kings head coach Ricky Ponting lavished praise on captain Shreyas Iyer after the PBKS skipper produced a sensational unbeaten century to keep the franchise alive in the IPL 2026 playoff race. Punjab ended their six-match losing streak with a commanding seven-wicket win over Lucknow Super Giants on Saturday, chasing down 197 in just 18 overs. Shreyas led the charge with a superb 101 not out off 51 balls, registering his maiden IPL century, while Prabhsimran Singh hammered 69 off 39 balls in a match-winning 140-run stand for the third wicket.
Reflecting on the victory, Ponting admitted Punjab had endured a difficult road in recent weeks but credited the team for responding under pressure. "We've done it the hard way, let's put it that way. We've done what we needed to do today.
Sloppy in the field again, gave them 20 more runs than what they should've got. Pretty clinical chase, especially being in trouble early," Ponting said after the match. The former Australia captain reserved special praise for Shreyas, revealing why Punjab invested heavily in him at the auction and hailing both his leadership and temperament.
"The captain, he's done that all season. That's his first IPL century tonight. We'll celebrate that and then we'll sit around and wait for those results tomorrow," he said.