Shreyas Iyer, the captain with the Midas touch: Does wonders for PBKS this time

Shreyas Iyer takes his third IPL team, Punjab Kings, into the playoffs after previous stints with Delhi Capitals and KKR. What makes him such a standout leader?

If a franchise is struggling in the Indian Premier League (IPL), then their primary role will be to make Shreyas Iyer their new leader. That has been the simple mantra of late. He scripted history by becoming the very first leader to carry three different franchises to the IPL playoffs. Interestingly, he made the record across the last five seasons of his captaincy. 

When the defending champions, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), decided not to retain the Mumbai-born for the 2025 season, few raised their eyebrows. Hardly any franchise has omitted its campaign-winning leader on the very next edition. However, as the proverb goes on to say, someone’s loss is someone’s gain. 

Punjab Kings (PBKS) signed the India veteran as the second-most expensive player in the tournament’s history, for a price of INR 26.75 crore. And the rest is history. His partnership with head coach, Ricky Ponting, has brought the playoffs tickets for Punjab for the first time since 2014. It’s been the same calmness he displayed on the last two occasions of his leadership. 

Shreyas Iyer’s calm captaincy settled DC during IPL 2025 
By the middle of the 2018 season, Delhi Capitals (DC) was going through a very poor period under Gautam Gambhir’s captaincy. The former Indian opener decided to step down from his position with Iyer replacing the veteran as Delhi’s new captain. 

In the very next season, with nearly the same set of players, they finished the group-stage at the third position. That brought confidence among the management and they decided to retain the youngster (25 year-old then) as captain for IPL 2020. 

With eight victories in 14 games at a net run rate of -0.109, Delhi ended at the second position on the points table. They made a strong beginning to the event with five victories in six fixtures and further stretched the momentum with two more wins. 

Suddenly, Delhi looked well balanced and a strong side with contributions coming from every individual. However, they slipped in the business end with four successive defeats in the last five clashes. The Capitals lost both the first qualifier and the final against the Mumbai Indians
(MI), making it four defeats against the franchise in the same season. 

Iyer, one of the younger members of the side, finished the IPL 2020 as the fourth leading run-getter. The right-handed batter clubbed 519 runs in 17 innings at a strike rate of 123.27, thanks to four half-centuries. 

Read More: IPL-winning captain Shreyas Iyer the leader trophyless Punjab Kings needed for ages

Shreyas Iyer’s silent contribution to KKR in IPL 2024
Just after Kolkata clinched their third IPL title, the entire credit went to the head coach, Gautam Gambhir. Meanwhile, Shreyas seemed to be a stone in the road. No one noticed him. However, his field placement in many games and his calm nature stabilised the dressing room a lot. 

Kolkata made to the final only once since 2014, and the pressure of winning a title was immense on the franchise. They had a fabulous beginning to the previous season with three successive victories before slipping a little in the middle half. 

But they picked up the pace in the business end and earned four victories in the last six group-stage fixtures, including two washouts. Even during the first qualifier and final against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), they enjoyed a cakewalk to claim the title. 

The 30-year-old smashed 351 runs in 14 innings at an average of 39. His strike rate of 146.86 contributed in the middle overs, shouldering two fifties with a best score of 58* runs. 

Read More: Shreyas Iyer: Story of Redemption and Resilience in IPL 2024

Shreyas Iyer’s partnership with Ricky Ponting offers PBKS incredible freedom 
Ponting and Punjab’s bidding for Iyer proved how crystal clear they were of signing the veteran. It’s the restart of the successful captain and coach combination after five years. 

Both installed freedom among the batters to play naturally in any situation of the game. Against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Mullanpur, the hosts lost half of their side for just 83 runs in eight overs. However, both Priyansh Arya and Shashank Singh didn’t look to play defensive and continued their aggressive batting. 

The former celebrated his century while Shashank ended with an unbeaten 52. Punjab reached 219 and earned a vital victory in the clash. 

A few weeks later, the exact incident happened against the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Jaipur. At the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Punjab lost three wickets inside the first three overs, but Nehal Wadhera didn’t hold back. The southpaw smacked 70 runs in 37 balls while Shashank deposited an undefeated 59 runs in 30 balls. 

Punjab’s bowling changes have been really fantastic. They are open to changing their plans according to the situation and condition. That was why Arshdeep Singh didn’t start with the new ball in a few games but has restarted to do so. 

Shreyas Iyer has also contributed with the bat, drilling 435 runs in 12 innings at a strike rate of 174.69. He nailed four fifties at the best score of an unbeaten 97. 

Making it to the playoffs with so many young players and not many renowned players is a huge feat for Punjab. The new skipper, Shreyas Iyer, has lived up to the expectations. He has been a strong character with a sharp mindset. However, his job isn’t finished yet. Lifting the trophy for PBKS will put him in the history books to be the first skipper to bring glory for the franchise. 

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