The recent IPL clash between Punjab Kings and Chennai Super Kings turned out to be a run-fest, with batters dominating the actions in Mullanpur. While 420 runs were scored across the two innings, debutant Priyansh Arya stole the show with a record-breaking century. Powered by his 103-run knock, PBKS set a 220-run target and went on to win the home game by 18 runs. Apart from Arya’s remarkable batting performance, another highlight of the match was poor fielding. CSK and PBKS jointly dropped as many as eight catches, which led Irfan Pathan to question the standards of the IPL. In a sarcastic social media post, Pathan compared the Indian franchise tournament with the Legends League Cricket where mostly retired players participate. “8 drop catches in the game today. Itne to legend league mein nahi chorte bhai (Even we don’t drop this many in Legends Leagues),” the former India all-rounder wrote on X. 8 drop catches in the game today. Itne to legend league mein Nahi chorte bhai. — Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) April 8, 2025 CSK might restrict their opponents below 200 if they had not missed some easy catches. PBKS also failed to demonstrate quality in fielding. Besides dropping a few chances, the hosts also leaked some unnecessary runs and it helped CSK remain in the fray till the last over. Chennai captain Ruturaj Gaikwad felt sloppy fielding cost them four matches in a row. “I think the last four games, the only point of difference (fielding being the difference). It has been critical. The catches we have been dropping, the same batsman is scoring 15, 20, 30 runs,” he said at the post-match interaction in Mullanpur. “We were getting wickets at regular intervals but they kept the momentum going. 10-15 runs lesser would have helped us. But it comes down to dropped catches,” he added. Gaikwad, however, was happy with how the batting unit performed against PBKS. “It was spot-on in the batting perspective. Two of our best batters (Rachin and Conway) who play pace well went at the top of the order. They had a good power play. A lot of positives in the batting department. We were two or three hits away today, Devon is more of a timer of a ball,” he explained. Having managed just one win this season, CSK are reeling at the second-last spot in the current IPL standings. They will next face defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders on April 11. Stay updated with all the latest news on IPL 2025, including the schedule, points table, top run-scorers (IPL Orange Cap), and leading wicket-takers (IPL Purple Cap). Get real-time updates, match highlights, and expert insights—only on News18.