With a spot within the IPL 2025 closing on the road, Punjab Kings skipper Shreyas Iyer made a daring name on the toss in Qualifier 2, opting to bowl first in opposition to five-time champions Mumbai Indians on the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday.Dealing with a do-or-die conflict for a spot in Tuesday’s summit showdown in opposition to Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Shreyas defined his reasoning for placing MI in to bat first.Go Past The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!“We’re going to bowl first. Barely overcast and the wicket was underneath the covers as nicely,” Iyer mentioned. “It’s a contemporary sport, our mindset is to exit and win. The surroundings is top-notch. Yuzi is available in.”Who’s that IPL participant?The choice aligns with the situations in Ahmedabad, the place Pitch No. 7 — identified for its even tempo and flat floor — was used for the all-important sport. Murali Kartik and Michael Clarke, analysing the strip earlier than the toss, predicted a run-fest, calling it a “batter’s paradise” the place 200-plus totals are par.Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya echoed Iyer’s view, admitting he would have bowled first as nicely.“We additionally would have bowled first. We have to bat nicely and assess the situations. It’s got flatter. When you bowl nicely, you’ll get some assist,” mentioned Pandya. “We got here very early morning after the final sport, and many of the guys focussed on restoration. Topley is available in for Gleeson, who has a niggle.”Each captains clearly anticipated that chasing underneath lights would possibly supply a bonus, particularly with the venue’s dew think about thoughts. With Ahmedabad providing true bounce and brief sq. boundaries (61m and 67m), the match promised high-octane leisure.
Beginning XIs:Punjab Kings: Priyansh Arya, Josh Inglis (w), Shreyas Iyer (c), Nehal Wadhera, Marcus Stoinis, Shashank Singh, Azmatullah Omarzai, Kyle Jamieson, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra ChahalMumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma, Jonny Bairstow (w), Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya (c), Naman Dhir, Mitchell Santner, Raj Bawa, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah, Reece Topley