Shreyas Iyer's act in IPL 2025 Final labelled 'criminal offence', deemed punishable by 'two-match ban': 'No apology'

Former Indian cricketer Yograj Singh has launched a scathing attack on Punjab Kings captain Shreyas Iyer for what he termed a “criminal offence” in the IPL 2025 final. Iyer, who was dismissed for just one run in two deliveries, played what Yograj called an unforgivable shot at a crucial juncture, contributing heavily to Punjab’s narrow six-run loss to Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the title clash on Tuesday. Shreyas Iyer during the IPL 2025 Final(PTI)

RCB, who ended an 18-year wait for their maiden IPL trophy, posted 190/9 after being put in to bat by Punjab at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. While the bowlers, led by Arshdeep Singh (3/40), Kyle Jamieson (3/48), and Yuzvendra Chahal (1/37), managed to rein in RCB’s big hitters to some extent, the chase came down to the final over.

Punjab’s innings was built on solid starts from Priyansh Arya (24) and Prabhsimran Singh (26), with Josh Inglis (39) and Shashank Singh (61* off 30 balls) keeping them in the hunt till the end. Despite Shashank’s 22-run blitz in the final over, PBKS fell agonizingly short at 184/7, and the turning point was undeniably the early loss of their skipper.

Reacting to Iyer’s soft dismissal, caught behind off Romario Shepherd, Yograj did not mince words. “The shot which Shreyas Iyer played in the final was a criminal offence, according to me. Ashok Mankad told me about this criminal offence, which comes under Section 302. He also told me that the repercussions of this are that you will be banned for two matches. What Shreyas did yesterday is not acceptable. There is no apology for that," he told ANI.

RCB's tight bowling

RCB’s bowling attack, including Krunal Pandya (2/17), Yash Dayal (1/18), and Bhuvneshwar Kumar (2/38), applied the brakes at crucial moments, and Pandya was deservingly named Player of the Match for his match-winning spell.

While RCB ended their long wait for a maiden title, the celebrations were marred on Wednesday after a stampede in Bengaluru resulted in at least 11 deaths, with several others injured. The stampede took place during RCB's title-winning celebrations, and the franchise is facing heat for reportedly not adhering to police guidelines.

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