Punjab Kings had recovered brilliantly in the final overs after a middle-overs collapse, with Azmatullah Omarzai producing a late assault to push the total to 200. Omarzai smashed 38 off just 17 balls, while opener Prabhsimran Singh earlier scored 57 off 32 deliveries.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
However, the Mumbai Indians chased down the target with one ball to spare, thanks to an unbeaten 75 from Tilak Varma and an aggressive start from Ryan Rickelton.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Reflecting on the result, Gavaskar said PBKS were in a strong position after their late batting surge.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cThis was a game Punjab Kings should have won after scoring 53 runs in the last three overs to get past 200. At that stage, they had the momentum and looked in control,\u201d Gavaskar told Jio Hotstar. \u201cShreyas Iyer\u2019s failure also hurt because when he scores, Punjab usually gets another 20-30 runs, which could have made the difference,\u201d Gavaskar explained.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
The cricket legend also questioned some of Punjab\u2019s bowling decisions, especially the use of Xavier Bartlett, who went wicketless and proved expensive. The Australian pacer gave away 53 runs in 3.5 overs.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cBartlett has been expensive, and I was surprised he wasn\u2019t given the new ball on a helpful pitch,\u201d he said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Gavaskar reserved special praise for Omarzai, who contributed with both bat and ball during the match, and suggested Punjab should continue backing the Afghan all-rounder in the remaining games.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cBartlett has been expensive, and I was surprised he wasn\u2019t given the new ball on a helpful pitch,\u201d he said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Meanwhile, with the fifth consecutive loss, the Punjab Kings (PBKS) are present at fourth position in the points table with 13 points in 12 matches. They will next face Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) on Sunday.<\/p>\r\n\r\n