Shashank Singh had only faced 10 deliveries when Punjab Kings (PBKS) entered the final over of their innings against Gujarat Titans (GT) in Match 5 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad on Tuesday (March 25).
At the other end stood the PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer, who was well set on 97 off just 42 balls with five boundaries and nine sixes.
Even though Shreyas needed only three runs to complete his maiden IPL century, he instructed Shashank to "hit every ball for a four or a six" and not focus on giving him the strike.
Shashank followed the plan perfectly as he smashed Mohammed Siraj for five boundaries and 23 runs in the final over, which propelled the Kings to a mammoth 243/5 in 20 overs.
"I didn't see the scoreboard to be very honest, but after the first ball I hit, I saw the scoreboard and Shreyas was on 97," Shashank said after the match.
"I was going to ask him if I should take a single or something but he only came and told me to not worry about his hundred. It takes a lot of heart and courage to say that because obviously hundreds don't come easily in T20, especially in IPL. That gave me even more confidence."
Shreyas and Shashank forged an unbroken 81-run partnership off just 28 balls. The PBKS skipper faced only four deliveries in the last three overs of the innings as Shashank played a blistering knock of 44 off just 16 balls.
"It's a team game we all know, but then in those situations, it's difficult to be that selfless but Shreyas was one," Shashank stated. "I know him for the past 15 years, he is the same. He told me just to be calm, to play cricketing shots that I usually play, to maintain my balance and by God's grace, I think we had a good finish."
In reply, GT put up a strong fight but were restricted to 232/5 in 20 overs. The Titans got off to a flying start, with captain Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan stitching together a rapid 61-run stand in just under six overs. However, their momentum took a hit when Gill got dismissed. From there on, the hosts failed to recover despite some fight back from Jos Buttler and Sherfane Rutherford.
