IPL 2025: Shreyas Iyer leads from the front as Punjab Kings post 243 against Gujarat Titans

Ahmedabad: Skipper Shreyas Iyer began his stint at Punjab Kings with a scintillating 42-ball unbeaten 97 to power his team to an imposing 243 for five against Gujarat Titans in their Indian Premier League match here on Tuesday.

Shreyas struck as many as nine sixes and five fours but he could not get to his maiden IPL hundred, as Shashank Singh (44 off 16 balls) took 23 runs off the final over to end the PBKS innings on a high note.

Shashank hit six fours and two sixes during his brilliant cameo.

Earlier, caring very little for reputation, Priyansh Arya (47 off 23) went after the GT bowling from the get go.

Arya, who was bought by PBKS for Rs 3.8 crore at the last IPL auction, clobbered Mohammed Siraj over deep square leg for his first six and followed it up with a four.

Kagiso Rabada made the first breakthrough when he had Prabhsimran Singh caught in the deep, paving the way for new PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer's entry into the middle and he started with a lovely drive on the up for a boundary before flicking the seasoned South African pacer for a six over deep square leg.

Back in strike, the 24-year-old Arya launched into left-arm pacer Arshad Khan and collected 21 runs in the fifth over with the help of three fours and a six on the off side. His best shot of the evening was, however, a spectacular straight drive past the bowler for a four.

Arya then drove Rabada for a boundary through extra cover, as PBKS amassed 73 runs for the loss of one wicket in the power play.

GT skipper introduced spin with Rashid Khan and the magician from Afghanistan straightaway delivered with the wicket of Arya at time when he was growing in confidence. It was a soft dismissal as Arya got a top edge while reaching out for a sharply turning delivery that also kept a bit low.

Up against his compatriot Rashid, Azmatullah Omarzai smashed the star leg-spinner for a first-ball six over the bowler's head.

Left-arm spinner R Sai Kishore grabbed two wickets in two balls, sending back Omarzai and Glenn Maxwell to reduce PBKS to 105/4 in the 11th over.

However, Shreyas had other ideas as the India batter reached his fifty in just 27 balls. Shreyas first went inside out to loft Sai Kishore for a six over long off and then smoked him for another maximum, as 17 runs came off the over after Marcus Stoinis got himself a boundary.

It was then the turn of Rashid to be at the receiving end of Shreyas' assault as he smashed the leggie for two successive sixes, the first one straight down the ground and the second over deep wicket.

Siraj was brought back into the attack, and Stoinis and Shreyas collected a six each off him.