The Punjab Kings and Mumbai Indians locked horns in an intense Qualifier Two match at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. In a rain-marred game that went all the way down to the penultimate over, the PBKS skipper Shreyas Iyer and MI pace maestro Jasprit Bumrah hogged the spotlight.

The match-up between Shreyas Iyer and Jasprit Bumrah emerged as one of the major highlights from yesterday's riveting Qualifier Two encounter. Shreyas's remarkable leadership skills came to the fore, and his brilliance with the bat proved to be a final nail in the coffin for MI as they saw their dreams of a sixth title getting quashed in front of their very eyes.

So what's all the buzz about? And why is the duo's 10-year challenge gaining a lot of traction? Read on as we take you back in time when the challenge began.

See also: Déjà Vu Final? Shreyas Iyer and Rajat Patidar face off again after SMAT clash

Shreyas counters Bumrah with a cheeky shot

The PBKS captain left his fanbase in awe when he played a cheeky shot against an inswinging yorker from Bumrah in the 18th over when his side was still 30 runs adrift. Jasprit Bumrah, known for his rapid thunderbolts, could have easily snuck that one through under his bat. But little did he know that Shreyas's calm demeanor would get the better of him in perhaps the most unexpected ways. 

Unfazed by a searing yorker aimed at his stumps, the PBKS skipper opened the face of the bat at the last minute and skillfully deflected it away past the fielder stationed at short third to pick up a valuable boundary for his side. That shot triggered a priceless reaction from the on-air commentators, who were stunned to see how Shreyas managed to execute a shot to a delivery like that.

Shreyas iyer vs bumrah

10 yrs challenge 🥶 pic.twitter.com/LWdbR8RGaB

— CURRY (@chef_curryyy) June 2, 2025

Shreyas played a carbon-copy shot back in 2015

Back in the 2015 edition, Shreyas and Bumrah came face-to-face, possibly for the first time in the history of IPL. Shreyas attempted a similar shot against Bumrah with perfection and achieved success. During the 21st fixture of the 2015 IPL edition between Delhi Daredevils (now DC) and Mumbai Indians, Shreyas went hard at the young speester during the 11th over of the DD innings. After taking him downtown for a colossal six over the sightscreen, Shreyas went on a roll and smacked two back-to-back fours.

One of his two boundaries that had come featured his innovative shot wherein he squeezed out a blockhole length delivery with the help of an angled bat and guided it towards the deep third man boundary for a four. DD went on to win that match, and Shreyas Iyer was the key architect of that victory, smashing a whirlwind 83 (56) to set up a comfortable 37-run victory over MI.