Punjab Kings, the league leaders, suffered their worst defeat of the IPL 2025 as they were bowled out for 101 in 10 overs and lost the Qualifier 1 by 8 wickets to Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Mullanpur on Thursday.

The PBKS could not negotiate the RCB bowlers after captain Rajat Patidar won the toss and chose to bowl first. Pacer Josh Hazlewood and leg-spinner Suyash Sharma picked up three wickets each, while Yash Dayal chipped in with a brace. Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Romario Shepherd picked up a wicket each.

PBKS, who were expected to make it to their first IPL final since 2014, will now play in the Qualifier 2 to have a second shot at the final.

Coach Ricky Ponting was furious after the team's poor show. Opener Priyansh Aryna, who was in form for most of the season, was caught at cover off the bowling of Dayal in the second over. His opening partner Prabhsimran Singh was dismissed by Bhuvneshwar in the third over.

At a time when captain Shreyas Iyer, who had experienced a great season by scoring 516 runs at an average of 46.91 with a highest score of an unbeaten 97, was expected to stick to the wicket and help the team recover from the dismal start, he went for a reckless shot off the bowling of Hazlewood, which was beyond cricketing wisdom. He was caught behind by Jitesh Sharma. Shreyas's dismissal left PBKS tattered at 30 for 3 in 3 overs.

The dismissal left former India captain Sunil Gavaskar, who was on the mic at the time, fuming. "Not a good shot at all. A nothing shot," Gavaskar was heard saying. As Shreyas walked into the dressing room, he found himself under the wrath of coach Ponting, who has done a tremendous job in his first season with the side by propelling them to the final. A visibly anguished Ponting was seen charging towards Shreyas and had an intense chat with him about the dismissal. Shreyas could hardly respond to Ponting unleashing his anger.

Hazlewood then sent back Josh Inglis off a rising ball that the former could not negotiate, creating a sense of panic in the dressing room. Nehal Wadhera soon followed suit as Dayal castled him. Suyash then showed his magic by removing dangerous Shashank Singh, Musheer Khan, and Marcus Stoinis. Romario Shepherd chipped in with the wicket of Harpreet Brar, while Hazlewood gave the final punch by dismissing Azmatullah Omarzai.

Punjab Kings, who earlier in the league defended 111 against Kolkata Knight Riders at the same venue, could not trouble RCB much. Philip Salt's magnificent half-century (56 not out off 26 balls) took them home.

RCB will play in the IPL final for the first time since 2016. The final is scheduled on June 3 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

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