Prabhsimran Singh carried on his scintillating form in IPL 2025 with a breathtaking 48-ball 91, while Arshdeep Singh's masterly new-ball spell devastated Lucknow Super Giants' (LSG) top-order. Punjab Kings (PBKS) won by 37 runs, climbing to second position in the points table at the HPCA Stadium on Sunday.
While Prabhsimran missed his second IPL century, his excellent boundary-hitting, with 60% of his runs scored off the off-side, enabled PBKS to reach a total of 236/5, their 11th 200-plus in the tournament. He was ably complemented by quickfire knocks from Josh Inglis (30), Shreyas Iyer (45), Nehal Wadhera (16), Shashank Singh (33*), and Marcus Stoinis (15*), as PBKS scored 75 runs off the last five overs. Akash Singh was LSG's best bowler, taking 2-30 while maintaining an economy rate under 10.
As a response, Arshdeep provided an early thrust, dismissing Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, and Nicholas Pooran during the powerplay to effectively put the game on ice for PBKS. Ayush Badoni (74) and Abdul Samad (45) put on a gallant 81-run partnership for the sixth wicket, but LSG could not get past that, finishing at 199/7. Their net run rate was therefore untouched, and PBKS won the vital two points to improve their chances of playing in the playoffs.
This win was PBKS's first IPL victory in Dharamsala in 12 years. PBKS were sent in to bat and were dealt an early blow when Priyansh Arya was bowled by Akash Singh. Inglis made the most of Mayank Yadav's pace, hitting three sixes, but was caught by Akash for 30. Prabhsimran, after being given a life by Pooran on 22, took control, hitting boundaries and reaching his fifty off 30 balls. Iyer maintained his good touch with some huge shots before getting out for 45.
Prabhsimran continued the run momentum with a sequence of sixes, before getting out for 91 while trying to play a reverse-sweep. Shashank then came into the limelight, taking four and six off Mayank, and hitting the ball outside the stadium. PBKS went past the 200-mark, and even after Prabhsimran got out, Shashank and Stoinis helped finish strongly, taking PBKS to 236/5 in 20 overs.
While chasing for LSG, Arshdeep set the tone early, getting Marsh, Markram, and Pooran out in the powerplay, leaving LSG vulnerable at 38/3. Pant, Miller, and Samad all got cheaply out, but Badoni and Samad retaliated with a counterattack. Samad hit two sixes off Chahal and one off Stoinis before getting out for 45. Badoni pressed on with his charge, hitting fifty off 32 balls, but got out for 74 after he misjudged a shot off Chahal. PBKS showed some nerve, triumphing by 37 runs.
Brief Scores:
Punjab Kings 236/5 in 20 overs (Prabhsimran Singh 91, Shreyas Iyer 45; Akash Singh 2-30, Digvesh Rathi 2-46)
Lucknow Super Giants 199/7 in 20 overs (Ayush Badoni 74, Abdul Samad 45; Arshdeep Singh 3-16, Azmatullah Omarzai 2-33)
Punjab Kings won by 37 runs.
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