Punjab Kings pulled off the highest successful run chase in Indian Premier League (IPL) history on Saturday, chasing down 265 against Delhi Capitals in Delhi. However, DC's fielding mistakes played a significant role in the outcome.
Shreyas Iyer's Lifelines
PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer received two major lifelines during the chase and made Delhi pay with a 71-run knock off 36 balls. The first chance came on the last ball of the 15th over when Vipraj Nigam had Iyer mistiming a lofted shot straight towards long-off. Karun Nair moved forward, settled under the ball, and should have completed a simple catch, but the ball slipped out of his hands. After the dropped chance, Vipraj Nigam sat down on the ground holding his head in disappointment.
Just four balls later, Iyer survived again. On the second ball of the 16th over, Kuldeep Yadav bowled a length delivery and Iyer tried to pull it. The ball went high towards long-on after taking the top edge. Once again, Karun Nair was the fielder under it, but he dropped the chance for the second time. It was Kuldeep's wrong'un, and despite the ball going high enough for a clear opportunity, the catch was missed.
Record Chase Unfolds
After being dropped twice in the span of four balls, Iyer stayed on and made the most of the chances, scoring 71 off 36 balls to help Punjab complete the record chase. Chasing 265, PBKS openers Prabhsimran Singh (76 off 26 balls, 9 fours, 5 sixes) and Priyansh Arya (43 off 17 balls, 2 fours, 5 sixes) unleashed their beast mode, putting on a 126-run opening stand in just 6.5 overs and posting the season's highest power play score of 105 for no loss. They lost three wickets in quick succession, but skipper Shreyas Iyer made full use of his reprieves to anchor the record chase with seven balls to spare.
