Half job done: PBKS lock top-two spot, eyes firmly set on June 3

Perennial underachievers from Punjab living fairy season in 2025 edition of Indian Premier League

- STATESMAN NEWS SERVICE

For the first time in over a decade, Punjab Kings find themselves within touching distance of that elusive IPL crown. The fairytale continued on Monday, when the Shreyas Iyer-led side defeated Mumbai Indians in Jaipur to seal a place in Qualifier 1.

Before the match, Iyer delivered a powerful message to his team. "Qualification is half job done, finishing top-two is half job done," revealed Shashank Singh in the post-match presser.

Head coach Ricky Ponting echoed Shreyas' mindset after the win. "I mean yeah, it's a great achievement till now, but really, if you look back, we haven't achieved anything yet. That's the one thing I've been saying to the players since the moment we qualified. The vision for me was always to finish in the top two, and we've got there now. It's a really happy group and we've enjoyed our time in each other's company for the last ten weeks, but we've got another week to go yet," Ponting told the host broadcaster.