Punjab Kings produced a stunning victory against Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League by hunting down a target of 265 to record the highest successful run-chase in the history of T20 cricket.
Punjab crossed the line with seven balls to spare at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, surpassing their own previous best chase of 262 against Kolkata Knight Riders in 2024.
KL Rahul had struck an unbeaten 152 – the highest score by an Indian in IPL – as Delhi reached 264-2 batting first, but Punjab attacked from the outset and reached 116-0 – the second-highest powerplay score in the tournament.
Punjab openers Prabhsimran Singh, who hit a blistering 76 from just 26 balls, and Priyansh Arya, who scored 43 off 17 balls, set the tone for the visitors with a 126-run opening stand in the sweltering Delhi heat.
Captain Shreyas Iyer then capitalised on two dropped catches by Karun Nair to reach an unbeaten 71 from 36 balls and take Punjab home with relative ease.
However, the record-breaking win was interrupted by an injury to Lungi Ngidi, who had to be rushed out of the stadium in an ambulance though Delhi later confirmed via social media that the fast bowler was stable and set to be discharged from hospital.
With Punjab racing to 43-0 in the third over of the chase, the South African back-pedalled from mid-off to attempt a catch off Arya but fell backwards, hitting his head on the turf.
The match was stopped for 15 minutes as the 30-year-old received medical attention, with Vipraj Nigam coming on as a concussion substitute before the match resumed.
Unbeaten Punjab remain top of the table with 13 points from seven matches – three ahead of Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Rajasthan Royals. Meanwhile, Delhi are sixth with six points.
