'Just want to stay positive...': Shreyas Iyer gives massive update on his hand injury

Punjab Kings captain Shreyas Iyer chose to stay calm and positive when asked about his injury, saying he doesn’t want to speak negatively as it might affect him.

In their IPL 2026 match against Chennai Super Kings in Chennai on Friday, Iyer won the toss and decided to bowl first.

The injury happened earlier during Punjab’s opening match against Gujarat Titans. Iyer was hit on the hand at the non-striker’s end when Cooper Connolly smashed a straight drive. He tried to protect himself but took a painful blow, which forced the physios to come in and check on him.

Shreyas Iyer on hand injury

The short break seemed to affect his focus. When play resumed, Iyer couldn’t settle properly and soon got out after edging a loose shot, adding to his frustration after the injury.

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There were concerns about whether he would play against Chennai, but Iyer reassured fans by coming out for the toss.

“It is fresh. I just want to be positive in the way I talk. And I feel that if I say something negative about myself, it rubs off my body. So, I just want to stay, keep it cool and composed," Iyer said at the toss.

After Punjab’s opening win, Iyer was again asked about his injury. He said he feels fine for now but didn’t want to say too much and risk jinxing it.

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“All I can say is it is nice. It is the same as it was before. I don’t want to jinx anything. I just want to stay positive and hopefully everything comes out right," he said after the match.

CSK vs PBKS toss

PBKS won the toss and opted to bowl against CSK. Five-time champions CSK have featured with one change as they have included Prashant Veer in place of Matt Short. CSK had lost to Rajasthan Royals by eight wickets in the opening match while Punjab Kings defeated Gujarat Titans by three wickets.

CSK vs PBKS playing XIs

Chennai Super Kings: Sanju Samson (w), Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Ayush Mhatre, Sarfaraz Khan, Shivam Dube, Kartik Sharma, Prashant Veer, Noor Ahmad, Anshul Kamboj, Matt Henry, and Khaleel Ahmed.

Punjab Kings: Prabhsimran Singh (w), Cooper Connolly, Shreyas Iyer (c), Shashank Singh, Nehal Wadhera, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Xavier Bartlett, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Arshdeep Singh, and Yuzvendra Chahal.