Ahmedabad, June 4(HS): Despite losing to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) by 6 runs in the final of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025, Punjab Kings' head coach Ricky Ponting praised the team's overall performance. In the final match played at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, Punjab's team bowled first, restricting RCB to 190 runs for 9 wickets. Arshdeep Singh and Kyle Jamieson delivered outstanding performances, taking 3 wickets each.Chasing the target, Punjab Kings got off to a quick start thanks to Priyansh Arya and Prabhsimran Singh, but the middle order couldn’t maintain that momentum and the team fell short of the target by just 6 runs. In the final overs, Shashank Singh made a remarkable effort, scoring an unbeaten 61 runs off 30 balls, but could not lead the team to victory.
In the post-match press conference, Ricky Ponting stated, The way we have played cricket throughout this season has been very entertaining. As a coach, when you can say that about your team, it's a matter of pride. It may be that our young middle order’s slight inexperience contributed to the loss today, but I know that players like Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh, and Nehal Wadhera will win us many matches in the future.
Ponting did not blame the pitch or conditions for the defeat. He said, We are not making any excuses. Shashank Singh himself said that this pitch was the best of the entire season. We just lost a bit of momentum in the final overs of the powerplay and lost some crucial wickets.
Punjab's team reached the final after a long wait of 11 years. Regarding this achievement, Ponting said, Just a few days ago, we were celebrating a great win on this ground that took us to the final. Today we are a bit disappointed. But this team is quite young, and we will come back even stronger next season.
Ponting also highlighted the change in the team's mentality and work culture as part of his achievement. He stated, When I was appointed as the coach, I made it clear that I wanted to change the team's environment. I wanted to take things in a new direction and I feel we have succeeded in that.
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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar
