"He has been consistent in nets...": PBKS skipper Iyer hails Brar after win over RR

Jaipur (Rajasthan) [India], May 18 (ANI): Following his side's win over Rajasthan Royals (RR), Punjab Kings (PBKS) skipper Shreyas Iyer hailed spinner Harpreet Brar for his spell, saying that the bowler has been extremely consistent in the nets and his mindset has been tremendous throughout the tournament.

PBKS took a step closer to their playoff qualification with a fine win over RR, climbing up to the second spot in the points table. Fine half-centuries from Nehal Wadhera and Shashank Singh, and a brilliant three-wicket haul from Harpreet Brar were the standout performances.

Speaking during the post-match presentation, Iyer said, "I was just passing on the message to all the players to keep a positive body language. You tend to drop and feel the game has gone away from you, but I am proud of every player out there to show that sort of great and bold approach."

"He (Brar) has been consistent in the nets. He wants to do the best for himself; he was hungry for this opportunity, and today I feel he stepped in and delivered at his best. Congratulations to him, and his mindset has been tremendous throughout. Absolutely brilliant approach and attitude coming in after the break, the boys were in high spirits and we also needed a rest, igoing forward in the tournament, t was the right time we came in together and showed the kind of mindset to win irrespective of the situation. Going forward, we saw that the spinners were difficult to charge over, we hardly got runs off their spinners, and that is one learning. Apart from that, we can change the game from any situation."

Opting to bat first, PBKS was 34/3. Following that, a 67-run stand between skipper Shreyas Iyer (30 in 25 balls, five fours) and Nehal Wadhera (70 in 37 balls, with five fours and five sixes) and a 58-run partnership between Wadhera and Shashank Singh (59* in 30 balls, with five fours and three sixes) solidified PBKS's hold on the game. Then an explosive partnership between Shashank and Azmatullah Omarzai (21* in three balls, with three fours and a six) took PBKS to 219/5 in their 20 overs.

Tushar Deshpande (2/37) was the leading wicket-taker for RR.

In the run-chase, young openers Yashasvi Jaiswal (50 in 25 balls, with nine fours and a six) and Vaibhav Suryavanshi (40 in 15 balls, with four boundaries and four sixes) provided RR with the start they needed, getting 76 runs in just 4.5 overs. RR kept up with the run-rate despite losing wickets later, with Dhruv Jurel (53 in 31 balls, with six fours and four sixes) playing another fine knock. However, other batters failed to respond to the scoreboard pressure, falling 11 runs short, with RR finishing at 209/7.

Harpreet Brar (3/22) was the top bowler for PBKS. Marco Jansen (2/41) and Omarzai (2/44) also were solid with the ball.

PBKS is at the second spot with eight wins and three losses, giving them 17 points, with one point from a no result. RR is at ninth, having won three, lost 10, and having six points. (ANI)

(The story has come from a syndicated feed and has not been edited by the Tribune Staff.)