IPL 2026: Cooper Connolly stars as Punjab Kings beat Gujarat Titans in thriller

Cooper Connolly was the star of the match as the 22-year-old all-rounder made an impressive IPL debut, helping Punjab Kings beat Gujarat Titans by three wickets in a close contest on Tuesday.

Coming to bat at number three, Connolly played a calm and confident innings, finishing unbeaten with 72 runs off 44 balls at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium. His knock guided PBKS to the target in 19.1 overs and gave the team a winning start to their IPL 2026 campaign.

PBKS bowling

Earlier in the match, PBKS bowlers did well to keep Gujarat Titans to 162 for six after choosing to bowl first. Vijaykumar Vyshak led the effort with three wickets for 34 runs, while Yuzvendra Chahal picked up two for 28. Marco Jansen also bowled tightly and took one wicket.

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Shubman Gill scored 39 runs

For Gujarat Titans, captain Shubman Gill scored 39, while Jos Buttler made 38. Glenn Phillips added 25 and Washington Sundar chipped in with 18, but the team could not build enough momentum.

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PBKS' chase

While chasing, PBKS chased down the total with Connolly leading the way with his unbeaten half-century. On the bowling side for GT, Prasidh Krishna took three wickets, while Rashid Khan and Washington Sundar picked up one each.

Chahal played an important role in slowing down GT during the middle overs. Gujarat Titans were off to a good start after being put in to bat. Shubman Gill looked in good touch early on, hitting boundaries and helping the team reach 35 runs in the first three overs. To break the momentum, PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer brought in Marco Jansen, and the move worked immediately.

Jansen dismissed Sai Sudharsan, who was caught at mid-off while trying to play an attacking shot. Soon after, Buttler got going with a few confident shots, including a boundary and a six, as GT reached 54 for one at the end of the powerplay.

Glenn Phillips did hit a six off Chahal, and Buttler also found the boundary, but PBKS managed to pull things back and kept the total within reach. In the end, Connolly’s steady innings made the difference as Punjab Kings held their nerve to win a tight game.