New Delhi: Cooper Connolly’s brilliant unbeaten half-century helped Punjab Kings beat Gujarat Titans by three wickets in their opening match. Indian Premier League match on Tuesday, but it was the post-match celebration that garnered just as much attention.Punjab Kings Captain Video Shreyas Iyer‘s sister Shrestha Iyer’s performance of Bhangra went viral on social media, creating a buzz about PBKS’ sensational win.Soon after the win, Shrestha shared her celebration on Instagram, writing: “Strong start, strong will. Now just focus on the win”. A disciplined bowling effort helped restrict GT to 162 for six after PBKS elected to bowl first, with Vijay Kumar Vaishak (3/34), Yuzvinder Chahal (2/28) and Marco Johnson (1/20) sharing the wickets. Captain Shubman Gill (39), Jos Buttler (38), Glenn Phillips (25) and Washington Sundar (18) made key contributions for GT.In reply, PBKS chased down the target in 19.1 overs, with Connolly (72 not out off 44 balls) leading the charge. Parsid Krishna (3/29), Rashid Khan (1/29) and Washington Sundar (1/27) took wickets for GT.
However, the victory came with an injury scare for Iyer when a powerful drive from Connolly hit the non-striker’s wrist at the end, forcing him to seek medical attention.Speaking at the post-match presentation, Iyer said of his injury, “The only thing I can say about the hand is that it’s good, as it was before, I don’t want to do anything.”He also praised Connolly’s match-winning innings, saying, “Cooper has a great mentality and hopefully he can continue his form. I’ve seen him play for Australia. Some of the shots he played were surreal to watch, especially Rashid’s one.”
