By S. Obeyesekere
In a stand out act of leading from the front, Shreyas Iyer yesterday smashed through the barriers of the unwanted by a hurricane innings of 87 off 41 balls rained in by 6 sixes in an apparent whack at the Indian cricket selectors following his omission for India’s June tour of England in a double edged swipe to knocking out Mumbai Indians out in a decisive showdown to carrying Punjab Kings into the final of the IPL at Ahamedabad in a strong message of his prowess with the bat.
His innings was more the spectacular in Punjab’s 5 wicket triumph with an over to spare overhauling Mumbai Indians 203 for 6 off 20r overs having arrived with Punjab Kings pushed on the back foot as he took on the might of the Mumbai Indians attack to countering the wrath of Jasprit Bumrah’s toe crushing yorkers and the guile of Trent Boult negsted with the effortless easeof improvised stroke play to scorching the boundary line.
Iyer carried the chase following Josh Inglis’ perfect 38 off 21 balls kickstart hitting Jasprit Bumrah for 29 in a single over. Iyer then combined with Nehal Wadhera (48 off 29 balls) in a crucial 84-run stand in 7.5 overs to take PBKS within touching distance of the win.
He finished it off with an over to spare, his knock featuring as many as eight sixes a memorably dramatic show.
Iyer’s great show when it most mattered in a flawlessly outstanding current run of form overlooked by the selectors, underwrote tremendous leadership qualities in braving a tricky situation when Mumbai Indians threatened to swing the contest their way.
Head Coach Ricky Ponting, commenting on the ICC Review, was quite blunt about Shreyas Iyer’s snubbing by the Indian selectors for the England tour when he said, “So I was disappointed that he didn’t get picked as I actually felt that he would get picked. But he didn’t. And I think that probably makes him a little bit hungrier for us when these playoff games come around.”