Fifties from Shreyas Iyer and Prabhsimran Singh lifted Punjab Kings to a four-wicket victory against Chennai Super Kings in their IPL clash in Chennai on Wednesday.
CSK remain rooted to the bottom of the table after their fifth successive defeat on their home ground at Chepauk, while PBKS jumped to second spot with 13 points.
After Priyansh Arya top-edged Khaleel Ahmed into the safe hands of MS Dhoni for 23, Prabhsimran and Iyer added 72 for the second wicket.
Prabhsimran reached his fifty off 31 balls but fell soon after for 54, caught by Dewald Brevis at deep midwicket off Noor Ahmad.
Iyer's fifty was marginally slower, coming off 32 balls. Although Nehal Wadhera fell cheaply, caught by Ravindra Jadeja off Matheesha Pathirana for five, Shashank Singh proved to be an able foil to Iyer.
Shashank smashed 23 in 12 balls before falling to a spectacular catch on the boundary by Dewald Brevis off Jadeja.
With just three runs needed, Iyer was bowled by Pathirana for 72 off 41 balls.
Earlier, after being reduced to 48/3, Sam Curran came to Chennai Super Kings' rescue with a belligerent 88 in just 47 balls against Punjab Kings in their IPL clash in Chennai on Wednesday.
But just when the home side were looking good to cross the 200 mark, a hat-trick by Yuzvendra Chahal sparked a collapse. CSK lost their last five wickets for six runs in seven balls to be bowled out for 190 in 19.2 overs.
CSK openers Shaik Rasheed and Ayush Mhatre had fallen cheaply after the home side were put in to bat. Rasheed was the first to go, dismissed by Arshdeep Singh for 11, while Mhatre was removed by Marco Jansen for seven.
When Ravindra Jadeja was caught behind by wicket keeper Josh Inglis off Harpreet Brar for 17, CSK were in a spot of bother.
Curran and Dewald Brevis then added 78 for the fourth wicket before the South African was castled by Azmatullah Omarzai for 32.
Curran was severe on Suyansh Shedge, smashing him for 26 in an over. He was eventually dismissed by Jansen in the 18th over, ducking to a short delivery, only for the ball to kiss his bat en route to the keeper.
That brought MS Dhoni to the crease and he got off the mark with a boundary first ball through a top-edge over the keeper.
Chahal was brought on for the penultimate over, which began with a bang for CSK as Dhoni heaved him over long-on for six. But the leggie had the last laugh, having the CSK skipper caught on the long-off boundary next ball.
Off the last three deliveries of the over, Chahal sent back Deepak Hooda, Anshul Kamboj and Noor Ahmad to seal his second IPL hat-trick.
Shivam Dube was still at the crease, having observed the meltdown from the non-striker's end. Back on strike for the 20th over, he inside-edged Arshdeep Singh to the fine-leg boundary, but was caught at long-off next ball to bring the curtains down on the CSK innings.
CSK, currently at the bottom of the points table, are desperate to revive their faltering campaign as they host the Punjab Kings at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. Following a disappointing defeat to Sunrisers Hyderabad in their last outing, CSK finds itself under mounting pressure to pick up crucial points and regain lost momentum.
Worryingly for the home side, they have now suffered four consecutive losses at Chepauk — a slump not seen since the 2008–2010 period — raising concerns about their once-formidable home advantage.
Meanwhile, the Punjab Kings come into this fixture on the back of a hard-fought draw against the Kolkata Knight Riders due to rain. Sitting at 5th place on the table, PBKS will be keen to solidify their playoff contention with a strong performance against the struggling Super Kings.
With both teams having much to play for, fans can expect a competitive clash at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai.
Playing XIs
CSK XI: Shaik Rasheed, Ayush Mhatre, Sam Curran, Ravindra Jadeja, Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Deepak Hooda, MS Dhoni (capt, wk), Noor Ahmad, Khaleel Ahmed, Matheesha Pathirana
PBKS XI: Priyansh Arya, Shreyas Iyer (capt), Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Josh Inglis (wk), Marco Jansen, Suryansh Shedge, Azmatullah Omarzai, Harpreet Brar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh