"How do you do that?" - Aakash Chopra lauds PBKS' tactics in IPL 2025 win vs MI
Former India player Aakash Chopra has lauded the Punjab Kings (PBKS) for the tactics they employed in their IPL 2025 win against the Mumbai Indians (MI). He noted that Shreyas Iyer and company took the courageous decision to bowl first and had specific bowling plans and field settings for every batter.
PBKS restricted MI to 184/7 in Match 69 of IPL 2025 in Jaipur on Monday, May 26. The IPL 2014 runners-up then achieved the target with seven wickets and nine deliveries to spare to book their berth in Qualifier 1.
In a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra,' the former India opener praised PBKS for their immaculate planning, highlighting that their tactics restricted even an enterprising batter like Suryakumar Yadav.
"The biggest story is that they changed their tactics. You need courage to do that. Something was consistently working fine for you, and that's your strength. You bat first and outbat the opposition. However, they said that it's not working out. So they would bowl first. After that, their bowling tactics were outstanding. Everyone was given a role, and a plan was made against every batter," Chopra said (2:10).
"They realized that the side boundaries were slightly big. So they could bowl slower short balls. They kept the square fielders back and the mid-on fielder up. They had mid-on in the circle for Suryakumar Yadav all through. How do you do that? If Suryakumar Yadav plays nearly 40 balls and doesn't score 75 runs, it's a massive win," he added.
Suryakumar Yadav consumed 39 deliveries for 57 runs in MI's IPL 2025 clash against PBKS. While he scored his runs at a strike rate of 146.15, none of the other top four MI batters had a strike rate of more than 135.
"No batter got the freedom to play" - Aakash Chopra on PBKS' bowling in IPL 2025 win vs MI
![Arshdeep Singh was the most economical PBKS bowler in their IPL 2025 clash against MI. [P/C: Getty]](https://statico.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/05/c6a08-17483195695081-1920.jpg?w=500)
In the same video, Aakash Chopra noted that the PBKS bowlers didn't allow the MI batters to score freely, with Ryan Rickelton (27 off 20) getting dismissed in the powerplay and Rohit Sharma taking 21 deliveries to score 24 runs.
"They bowled incredibly well. No batter got the freedom to play, whether it was the powerplay overs where Ryan Rickelton got out, or Rohit Sharma, who batted very slow. Eventually, he was caught in the deep off Harpreet Brar's bowling," he said (3:40).
The cricketer-turned-commentator praised Vijaykumar Vyshak for bowling an impressive spell.
"Will Jacks played one or two good shots, but then he fell prey to Vijaykumar Vyshak. Vyshak was very, very good. He started the season and has ended the season as well, if we talk about the league phase. He was outstanding then in Ahmedabad, and he is outstanding now in Jaipur," Chopra elaborated.
While noting that Harpreet Brar was economical and picked up the big wicket of Rohit Sharma, Chopra appreciated Arshdeep Singh for bowling a terrific final over.
"Harpreet Brar bowled restrictively continuously. He too picked up a wicket and dismissed the Mumbai Indians' legend, Rohit Sharma. 22 or 23 runs came in the 19th over, and Arshdeep Singh gave only three runs in the last over. He was phenom. They (MI) were at least 20 runs short. 184 was never going to be enough," he observed.
While Arshdeep Singh registered figures of 2/28 in four overs, Harpreet Brar delivered a spell of 1/36 in four overs. Vijaykumar Vyshak returned figures of 2/44 in four overs, with the 23 runs he conceded in his final over spoiling his figures a little.