Chennai (Tamil Nadu) [India], May 1 : Following his side's win over Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Punjab Kings (CSK) skipper Shreyas Iyer talked about his love for run-chases, saying that he thrives when there is a big total on the board.
Iyer continued his fine run away from home. At the same time, a half-century from Prabhsimran Singh and a hat-trick from Yuzvendra Chahal were other standouts as PBKS eliminated CSK from the playoff race with a four-wicket win at Chepauk on Wednesday.
Speaking at the post-match presentation, Iyer said, "I love chasing on any field. I feel like I thrive whenever there is a big total on the board and you need to take the charge and momentum for the team for the rest of the batters to come and go full throttle."
About his poor home run, where he is yet to score a fifty, he said, "I do not want to curse it [his away form] and just stay in the present and reacting to the ball. It does not matter where I am playing. I just play with my approach. Sometimes it works, and sometimes it doesn't. Lately, I have been batting a lot in the nets and facing the quick bowlers, especially with the new ball, and that's given me immense confidence. This is one part I have really worked on. And the attitude is something that I keep high whenever I approach the field. So I think all these small boxes have been ticked and that is there to see."
Regarding the chase, Iyer said that the team had a discussion with coach Ricky Ponting about increasing the intensity and not leaving anything to chance against the great death bowlers of CSK.
"So the approach was to just take on the bowlers with the power hitters coming down the order and back ourselves. When I got in, I said that I needed to play a few balls to see how the wicket is playing. When I played ten balls, then I started going. Prabh and Priyansh (Prabhsimran Singh and Priyansh Arya) have been fabulous the way they have been playing. They have been smart, not just slogging," he concluded.
Coming to the match, PBKS won the toss and opted to bowl first. CSK was 48/3 at one point, then a 78-run stand between Sam Curran and Dewald Brevis (32 in 26 balls, with two fours and a six) helped them get back in the innings. Curran continued to fire single-handedly, making 88 in 47 balls, with nine fours and four sixes. CSK was bundled out for 190 in 19.2 overs. It was a hat-trick from Yuzvendra Chahal (4/32) that made CSK collapse from 172/4 to 190 all out. Arshdeep Singh (2/25) was also superb with the ball.
During the run-chase, Priyansh Arya (23 in 15 balls, with five fours) and Prabhsimran Singh gave PBKS a quick start with a 44-run stand. A 72-run stand between Prabhsimran (54 in 36 balls, with five fours and three sixes) and skipper Shreyas Iyer solidified PBKS' control over the game. Iyer continued to take control, scoring 72 in just 41 balls, with five fours and four sixes and stitching a partnership with Shashank Singh (23 in 12 balls, with a four and two sixes).
PBKS did lose wickets towards the end, but won by four wickets with two balls left.
Khaleel Ahmed (2/28) and Matheesha Pathirana (2/45) were the top wicket-takers for CSK.
PBKS is now at the second spot in the table with six wins, three losses and a no result, giving them 13 points. CSK is struggling at the bottom, with two wins and eight losses, giving them four points.
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