Thanks to captain Shreyas Iyer’s outstanding performance in the chase against the Mumbai Indians in Sunday night’s Qualifier 2, Punjab Kings (PBKS) advanced quickly to their first IPL final in eleven years. Shreyas Iyer post-match tirade against teammate Shashank Singh attracted a lot of attention, even though the team produced a record chase.
At one point, PBKS found themselves in a difficult predicament as they chased a massive target of 204 in the ticket to the final game at the Narendra Modi Stadium. But their captain persevered with an undefeated 87 off just 41 balls, which included eight sixes and five fours.
Due to his effort, PBKS secured a ticket in the summit match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) by completing the most successful run chase in IPL history against MI. But it was during the traditional handshake after the game that Iyer became irritated with Shashank. A video of Shreyas Iyer mistreating Shashank and refusing to interact with him swiftly went viral.
#PBKSvsMI Shreyas Iyer angry on Shashank for His absence in running between games … pic.twitter.com/RCMPwJscvY
— . (@itzfcking18) June 1, 2025
The only skipper to lead three separate teams to an IPL final is Shreyas Iyer.
The incident in the 17th over of the run chase was the source of his ire. The squad was in a respectable position with six wickets remaining and PBKS needing 35 runs from 21 balls. However, because to his careless dashing between the wickets, Shashank, who had just reached the crease, was run out for two off three deliveries.
The right-handed batter smashed the ball to mid-on and raced for a single after Trent Boult hit him with a low full throw. Hardik Pandya caught the batter short of the crease with a direct hit at the non-striker’s end from his location at mid-on. The 33-year-old was jogging at first, according to replays, and only later did he ramp up speed, which lost him his wicket.
With Jasprit Bumrah still having one more game to play, the dismissal gave MI an unexpected advantage. Iyer brilliantly hung onto one end and led his team over the finish line after being dismissed. Additionally, he became the only captain in history to lead three separate teams to an IPL championship game.