Shreyas Iyer rejects theory that PBKS blundered in planning, says execution was lacking: 'Not doubting my decisions'

Shreyas Iyer put a brave face in the wake of a disappointing defeat for his team, Punjab Kings (PBKS), in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 Qualifier 1 against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) on Thursday. The 30-year-old Iyer did not make any excuses as their innings collapsed as a house of cards at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur, scoring just 101 batting first in a big game.

RCB directly qualified for the final after completing the chase in just 10 overs and after the loss of two wickets, while PBKS will now be required to complete in Qualifier 2 for a place in the final.

PBKS have a poor record at their new home in Mullanpur, having lost seven out of 10 matches so far and it was no different in Qualifier 1 as their batters kept perishing at regular intervals. However, a major reason behind their downfall was their consistently poor shot selection.

Shreyas Iyer rues lack of execution from batters

Iyer, who had led the team to a top-of-the-table finish in the IPL 2025 league stage, struggled to explain what went wrong with the team’s batting. However, Shreyas admitted that they will now need to go back to the drawing board and analyse how they can improve things from here.

“Not a day to forget, but got to go back to the drawing board. We lost a lot of wickets (in the first innings.) There’s a lot to go back and study on,” Iyer said in the post-match presentation ceremony. “I am not doubting on my decisions to be honest. Whatever we did in terms of planning, outside of the ground whatever (planning) we did, I think it was on point. Just that we couldn’t execute it on the field.

Iyer, however, sent a motivational message to his players, reminding them that they still have Qualifier 2 to play.

“Can’t even blame the bowlers, as it was a low total to defend. We got to work on our batting especially on this wicket. In all the games we have played here there has been some variable bounce. We can’t give such reasons because we are professionals at the end of the day and we have to bat according to the situation and we have to live up to it. We have lost the battle, but not the war.”

In Qualifier 2, PBKS will face the winner of the Eliminator, which will be played today (30 May, Friday) between Gujarat Titans (GT) and Mumbai Indians (MI).