R Ashwin Picks Two PBKS Stars Who May Not Get Due Credit After Shreyas Iyer's Solid Knock vs MI

Shreyas Iyer stepped up like he has been doing during the course of the IPL 2025 as Punjab Kings beat five-time champions Mumbai Indians to enter the final. Iyer's unbeaten 87 off 41 deliveries powered the franchise into their second Indian Premier League (IPL) final, and first in eleven years, with a five-wicket win over the five time champions Mumbai Indians (MI). Chasing a stiff target of 204, Punjab showed both aggression and composure to overhaul the total with an over to spare, thanks largely to Iyer's clean striking and calculated leadership in the middle.
Chennai Super Kings star bowler Ravichandran Ashwin also credited two other players for the win. Australian Josh Inglis then took charge alongside Iyer, stroking a confident 38 off 21 deliveries, including five boundaries and two sixes. Then, with pressure building, Nehal Wadhera partnered with Iyer to put together a critical 84-run stand, maintaining the required rate.
"I definitely appreciate Shreyas for a couple of shots - that six over extra cover against Ashwini Kumar off a free hit. Whenever they needed a boundary, he got it. But the game-changing batter was Josh Inglis, along with Nehal Wadhera. Iyer is popular, so the credit that needs to go to Inglis and Wadhera might not end up going. But he played a 20-run over against Bumrah in the powerplay. They got Bumrah to stop the run-scoring and get a wicket. But not only did he not get a wicket, he was also hit for 20 runs. How did he do it? Inglis scored a six against the slower ball on the leg side, then waited to hit one over third man. The moment that the slower one went for a six, Bumrah did not have any option. He had to go hard length into the pitch. That one particular over changed the tide of the game," he said on Ash ki Baat.
"There is also a runaway superstar in the Punjab team, and we might see a lot of him in Indian cricket— Priyansh Arya. If you noticed today, he got out in the powerplay, but scored 20 off 10 balls. MI got two wickets in the powerplay, but his knock gave Punjab the momentum and gave Iyer the luxury to stay on course with Wadhera."
Having already led Delhi Capitals (DC) (2020) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) (2024) to the summit clash, lifting the title with KKR, Iyer now becomes the first captain to reach three IPL finals with three different franchises. With this, he also has a shot at becoming a two-time IPL-winning captain, a feat very few have achieved. This was Punjab's first playoffs after eleven years.
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