Punjab Kings lost a good chance to confirm their top 2 spot against Delhi Capitals. They failed to defend a 200+ total. While their batting showed power once again, their bowling faltered against the already eliminated DC. After the tough loss, PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer expressed his opinion on what went wrong.
While speaking in the post-match interview, Iyer said that they had set a fantastic target of 207 runs on that particular pitch. He admitted that the pitch had some bounce and the ball wasn’t coming on at the same pace. The Punjab captain criticized his bowlers, saying that they weren’t disciplined enough.
He further added that the bowlers had to target the hard length on that kind of pitch, but ended up bowling too many short balls. Despite losing an important match, he wasn’t too worried about it, since they had already qualified for the playoffs. Iyer stated that every team was equally poised at the moment, and they just had to stay calm and positive.
“207 was a fantastic score on this wicket. There was some variable bounce and it wasn’t coming on at the same pace. We weren’t disciplined enough with ball. We assessed the wicket and decided to bowl hard lengths at the stumps, but we went overboard with bouncers trying to take wickets.”
Shreyas Iyer in the post-match press conference
He suffered a minor finger injury in Punjab’s match against the Rajasthan Royals. When asked about his injury status and whether he would be available for the all-important match against MI, Iyer said that there was nothing to worry about. He revealed that there were no issues with his body and that his finger should be fine for the match against MI.
Cricketing pundits shocked as Shreyas Iyer gets left out of the squad against England
The Indian team’s Test squad for the England series has been announced. And the biggest shock was Iyer’s exclusion from the team. Not only was it a shock for cricket fans all over the country, but it was also a strange decision for many cricket experts. Ajit Agarkar stated that he couldn’t find room for Iyer in the Test squad.
Ian Bishop said that Iyer wouldn’t find a place in the team as long as Gautam Gambhir and Agarkar were in charge. Mr. IPL himself, Suresh Raina, expressed his opinion and said that if Karun Nair could get a second chance in Test cricket, then Iyer should also get a chance. Here are some top reactions from cricketers of the past and present:
Sunil Gavaskar said that Iyer was needed in the team, especially when Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma were no longer in the side. Joy Bhattacharya was disappointed that Iyer wasn’t selected, even after having a good Ranji season. Virender Sehwag was also shocked not to see an in-form Iyer in the squad. Sanjay Manjrekar admitted that the squad selection for the England Test series was quite strange.
