Skipper Shreyas Iyer's half-century draped in elegance and aggression in equal measure was the centrepiece in Punjab Kings' five-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings in their IPL match here on Friday.
Shreyas (50, 29 balls) and his 59-run alliance with Nehal Wadhera for the fourth wicket helped Punjab end up at 210 for five while chasing a competitive 209 on a dew-less Chepauk night, also consigning the hosts to their second successive defeat.
It was Punjab's second win on the trot, but there were other heroes too on the night for the PBKS. Chasing a target at a run-rate closer to 11 required consistent and calm run-making and that was what PBKS precisely did through their top-order, with just about everyone
chipping in.
Priyansh Arya (39, 11 balls), Prabhsimran Singh (43, 34b), Cooper Connolly (36, 22b) all came up with mentionable contributions.
Arya was quite brutal while vandalising CSK attack - Khaleel Ahmed was put away for a 4 and six while Matt Henry was dispatched for 4, 6, 4 in his first over that leaked 20 runs. Arya and Prabhsimran cracked 61 runs in just 4.2 overs that gave a strong portend to the route the match was taking. The Delhi batter was cleaned up by Henry to give a token relief to CSK, but none was more significant in PBKS's march than their skipper Shreyas, who unfurled his full range of shots.
Shreyas started a bit slow reaching 8 off 9 balls, as Connolly was doing the bulk of the work. But once the Australian fell to Anshul Kamboj, Shreyas took over the chase.
As expected, he hammered the spinners, and the shot of the innings was an inside-out six off leg-spinner Rahul Chahar.
Shreyas brought up his fifty in 26 balls with a boundary off Kamboj, but soon fell to the bowler, chasing a wide delivery.
Wadhera fell in the first ball of the next over to Henry as PBKS slipped to 186 for five from 186 for three.
However, that proved a minor aberration.
Earlier, Ayush Mhatre showcased his abundant talent with a 43-ball 73, powering the Super Kings to a competitive 209 for five.
Mhatre and skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad (28) added 96 runs for the second wicket after Sanju Samson returned to the hut early. Samson inexplicably moved down to the leg-side and tried to cart Xavier Bartlett's out-swinger over covers, but all he could manage was a healthy edge to Prabhsimran behind the wicket.
But his dismissal proved a minor jitter, as Mhatre tore apart Punjab's bowling with power and precision.
Brief scores:
Chennai Super Kings: 209 for 5 in 20 overs (Ayush Mhatre 73, Shivam Dube 45 not out, Sarfaraz Khan 32) lost to Punjab Kings 210 for 5 in 18.4 overs (Shreyas Iyer 50, Prabhsimran Singh 43) by 5 wickets.