WATCH: 'Is saal jita dena...' - Shreyas Iyer reveals special request of a PBKS fan, while explaining the 'Sarpanch' tag

Under the charismatic leadership of Shreyas Iyer, the Punjab Kings are all set to feature in the IPL 2025 final, taking on RCB. Notably, it is the historic IPL final appearance for the Kings as they are playing in the tournament’s summit clash after a long wait of 11 years, since they played in it last in 2014 against KKR.

Meanwhile, the PBKS skipper Shreyas Iyer recently made it to the headlines when he spoke about the interesting tag of ‘Sarpanch Sahab’ given to him by Punjabi people and the Punjab Kings management.

Wherever I go in Punjab right now, they call me ‘Sarpanch Saab’ – Shreyas Iyer

In an exclusive conversation with team owner Preity Zinta, Iyer also revealed a PBKS fan’s special request to him while he was travelling in his car in Chandigarh.

“You've been named Sarpanch Saab. So, how does a Mumbai boy who went to Kolkata now become a Punjabi? How is the tag of this Sarpanch Saab? Because it's just kind of stuck, and somehow it feels very organic,” asked Preity Zinta to Shreyas Iyer.

“I seriously have no idea about it. I've got no clue how I got this name, but I'm sure it came from the management. They gave me this tag, and it's been tagging along. So, wherever I go in Punjab right now, in Chandigarh, whenever I get out of the hotel, they said, “Sapanch Saab ek picture lelo. Yeah. So, it happened,” said Iyer to Zinta.

“Both incidents. But I remember this incident where we were just coming back from the ground in our Innova. So, we were stopped at the signal, and there was this car filled with five guys. They said me, ‘Sapanch Saab is baar jita dena, ek raasta aapke naam pe kar denge (Sarpanch Saab, please win trophy for us, we’ll name a road on your name,” he added later.

The video of this conversation between skipper Shreyas Iyer and team owner Preity Zinta also went viral on social media as soon as Punjab Kings shared it on their official X handle (formerly Twitter).

Here’s the video:  

𝐒𝐀𝐑𝐏𝐀𝐍𝐂𝐇 𝐒𝐀𝐀𝐁, Bas Jeetna Hai! 🏆♥️ pic.twitter.com/7qtyFW4N4Y

— Punjab Kings (@PunjabKingsIPL) June 3, 2025