Ricky Ponting in the middle (PTI Photo) NEW DELHI: Punjab Kings staged a historic chase against Delhi Capitals and head coach Ricky Ponting made it clear that skipper Shreyas Iyer was at the heart of the victory. Chasing a massive 265, Punjab showed faith throughout, with Iyer calmly guiding the team home with an unbeaten 71.Ponting did not hold back in praising his captain and explained why he tried so hard to bring Iyer into the team. “He’s a great person. And that’s why I went as hard as I did in the auction. I knew he was going to be a great leader and that we could rebuild this team and rebuild this streak,” he said.
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Bombay Sport Exchange: Munaf Patel on Gautam Gambhir, Virat vs Bumrah and Indian bowling.Punjab got off to a fast start with Prabhsimran Singh and Priyansh Arya whose aggressive batting set the tone early in the chase. Their partnership gave the team momentum and Iyer made sure it didn’t go to waste by staying till the end.Ponting revealed his confidence in Iyer during the chase. “Because the one thing I know is if he’s on the end in the run chase, we’re not going to lose too many games. And even tonight I went 11, 12 on the line. I just grabbed him and said if you’re on the end, we’re going to win the game. And he did it again,” he added.Ponting also praised the opening pair, saying, “And the partnership that (Prabhsimran and Priyansh) have together is quite amazing. They complement each other very well. Left hand, right hand. They both hit different parts of the country.”Despite the record chase, he pointed to areas for improvement. “It’s satisfying to have the top chase, but to have the top chase you also have to run a lot. So we’ve got things to do with our bowling and fielding,” he said.He also talked about mentoring young players like Prabhsimran. “At the end of the day, I’m a teacher… Fortunately, he listens and does his job.”
