Chennai Super Kings’ left-arm pacer Khaleel Ahmed produced a moment of pure magic during the 22nd match of IPL 2025, sending Punjab Kings skipper Shreyas Iyer’s stumps flying in dramatic fashion. The high-octane clash took place at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur, where Khaleel, despite a shaky start, made a strong comeback with the ball.
The match didn’t begin ideally for Khaleel, as he was taken to the cleaners in the very first over by the young and fearless Priyansh Arya, conceding 17 runs. But the experienced left-armer held his nerve and returned for his second over with a renewed focus. After starting the over with a dot ball, he was struck for a clean six by Shreyas Iyer, followed by a couple of runs on the next delivery.
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However, it was the fourth ball of the over that changed the script. Khaleel bowled a full delivery on the off stump, and Iyer, with minimal footwork, tried to flick it across the line. The ball sneaked through the yawning gap between bat and pad and shattered the off-stump. It was a peach of a delivery, and Khaleel didn’t hold back — delivering a fierce, emotional send-off to the PBKS captain.
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Shreyas Iyer walked back with just 9 runs off 7 balls, extending his personal struggles against Khaleel, having scored only 33 runs in 7 IPL innings off him and falling victim for the third time.
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At the toss, Shreyas Iyer mentioned PBKS wanted to back their batting firepower and preferred to chase, despite no major dew threat. Gaikwad, on the other hand, said CSK would’ve batted first anyway, citing the dry surface. Both teams fielded unchanged line-ups, with Gaikwad stressing the importance of better fielding and avoiding expensive overs in the middle phase of the innings.
