"We just kept pegging them back": PBKS bowling coach lauds bowlers for thrilling win over MI

Punjab Kings secured their first IPL final berth since 2014 by successfully chasing down Mumbai Indians' total of 203 with an over remaining in Qualifier 2 at Ahmedabad. While Shreyas Iyer's unbeaten 87 off 41 balls led the batting charge, PBKS bowling coach James Hopes praised his bowling unit for containing Mumbai Indians on a batting-friendly surface.

Mumbai Indians got off to a strong start after being sent in to bat, reaching 65 for 1 in the powerplay overs. They maintained a run rate of over ten runs per over during the middle phase of the innings.

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However, the Punjab Kings bowlers managed to take regular wickets, preventing Mumbai Indians from launching a final assault in the death overs. "There was a stage where I reckon they were looking at 220, 225 and we just kept pegging them back at the right time," Hopes said at the post-match press conference. "We never went for that big over of 18, 19. We kept pegging them at 10, 11 knowing that we got Arshdeep coming at the end and Azmatullah bowled beautifully as well."


"We gave them a few extra runs, yeah, but that's why I was saying I thought they were going to get 220. There was a bit of confidence in our group when they only got 200, thinking we've dragged them back here. You could even tell our first over batting the way the ball came off the bat, it was just skipping off the bat a little more and you could tell there was just a little bit of dew, a little bit of wetness out there, that was going to help us, and it did."


The chase of 204 was particularly challenging against five-time champions Mumbai Indians, who had never lost while defending a total over 200, especially with Jasprit Bumrah's impressive economy rate of 6.36.


Josh Inglis took on Bumrah early, hitting him for two sixes and two fours in his first over, providing crucial momentum to the chase. "The way Josh Inglis attacked Boom up front to get him off his game a little bit… if you'd told us we were chasing 200 at the start of the day and we were going to take 40 off Jasprit, we would have taken that every day of the week and liked our chances," said Hopes . "Josh has got a pretty good record against him in short-form cricket. He plays him well," added the coach.


"I don't think it was a conscious decision to go after that over. He just got some balls and he put them away, and on another day, those balls go to the fielder and he's not taking what he did off that over. So doing that to him in the first over not only has a flow-on effect for his bowling but has a flow-on effect for the rest of their team as well," said Hopes.



"He doesn't get flustered very easily and he knows his match-ups," said Hopes in praise of skipper Shreyas Iyer. "Tonight we kept them to 200 when I reckon they could have got 220, 230 and just because the way he pulls the strings out there and manoeuvres bowlers around. We had Vyshak with one over left. He took his gut call to bowl Azmat. He's a sensational captain and he's a sensational player," stated the coach as Iyer led the franchise to its first final since 2014, and possibly, to a maiden IPL crown.