Sunil Narine, the legendary spinner, took two wickets against Punjab Kings, marking a milestone in IPL history as the player with the most dismissals against a single team. Previously, Umesh Yadav held the record with 35 wickets against Punjab, but Narine overstepped this on April 15 with a fantastic performance, giving away just 14 runs in three overs. Alongside Varun Chakaravarthy, who also took two wickets, Narine played a key role in getting Punjab out for a mere 111 runs in the ongoing IPL 2025.
Harshit Rana was another standout performer, collecting three wickets, and this left the defending champions in a hopeful position to secure an easy win. But things took a turn during KKR’s batting innings. They lost two quick wickets early on, including their opener Quinton de Kock and Narine himself, which raised some alarms. Thankfully, captain Ajinkya Rahane teamed up with Angkrish Raghuvanshi, and together they managed to build a solid 55-run partnership before Rahane was out for 17.
After Rahane’s dismissal, though, it felt like the match slipped away from KKR’s grasp. Wickets began to tumble, and nothing seemed to be working for them on the field. Punjab Kings had their own hero in Yuzvendra Chahal, who wreaked havoc by taking four wickets in quick succession. Thanks to his impressive bowling, KKR was restricted to the same score as Punjab—111 runs—and PBKS clinched the match with a 16-run victory.
In the post-match talk, Shreyas Iyer expressed just how difficult it was to put the win into words. He analyzed the pitch, explaining how the variable bounce made things tricky. “It’s hard to find the right words. I was just going with my gut and paying attention to what was happening with the ball. I noticed it was turning a bit and asked Yuzi to stay calm. We knew we had to be aggressive, and our field placements were spot on. When I got my chance to bat, I faced a couple of deliveries; one kept low while the other hit the bottom of my bat. The variance in the bounce was a real challenge for everyone trying to sweep,” Shreyas reflected during the presentation after the match. It was clear the victory meant a lot to the team, and the difficulties they faced made the win even more special.
