Former India cricketer Sunil Gavaskar blasted Punjab Kings captain Shreyas Iyer for the latter’s shot selection during their Qualifier 1 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) against Royal Challengers (RCB) Bengaluru on Thursday in Mullanpur.
Sent into bat first, Punjab Kings had the worst possible start with four wickets down in the powerplay itself. Iyer, who came in at one down, lasted just three balls before feathering a edge to Jitesh Sharma’s hands behind the stumps off Josh Hazlewood.
At a time when the Punjab Kings skipper needed to stay in the middle, the right-hander went for big swing, but the extra bounce did the work for the Australian pacer much to the delight for RCB players. Iyer was dismissed for just two off three balls.
Iyer’s shot selection earned the wrath of Gavaskar, who minced no words on air. “This is not a good shot,” said Gavaskar while on commentary. “This is a nothing shot. One can understand if you are trying to play it over long off, but this is just a wild swing. Two wickets down, just the fourth over going,” he added.
RCB bundle out Punjab Kings for 101
Meanwhile, RCB were at their very best as they bundled Punjab Kings out for 101 in 14.1 overs. RCB bowlers justified skipper Rajat Patidar’s decision to field first by packing off Punjab Kings for a paltry total. Marcus Stoinis was top-scorer with 26.
Young leg-spinner Suyash Sharma (3/17) did the star turn for RCB by picking up three wickets pacers Josh Hazlewood (3/21), Yash Dayal (2/26) and Bhuvneshwar Kumar (1/17) left Punjab Kings reeling at 50/5 in the seventh over. A win for RCB will take them to final for June 3.
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