Home
Punjab Kings (PBKS), who looked almost unstoppable at the beginning of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 after winning six consecutive games, are now staring at a shocking elimination from the tournament.
The Shreyas Iyer-led side has completely lost momentum in the second half of the season, losing six of their last games on the trot. So much so that even a victory against the already-eliminated Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in today’s clash won't guarantee them a place in the top four.
PBKS’ qualification scenario explained
The first thing PBKS must do is beat LSG in their final league-stage fixture.
A win would take the team to 15 points, but their qualification hopes would still depend heavily on the results of other matches.
The biggest result that PBKS fans would be keeping an eye on is the clash between the Rajasthan Royals (RR) and the Mumbai Indians (MI).
If RR wins that match, they will move to 16 points, and PBKS and all the remaining teams hopeful for the last four will be eliminated directly from the playoff race.
Another crucial game for PBKS will be Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) versus Delhi Capitals (DC).
Punjab would ideally want KKR to lose the match. However, even if Kolkata manages to win, PBKS would hope the margin is not massive enough to drastically improve KKR’s net run rate.
At present, KKR are also on 13 points with a net run rate of +0.011, while PBKS hold a slightly superior NRR of +0.227.
As a result, the Punjab side will need multiple outcomes to go their way if they want to secure the final remaining playoff spot in IPL 2026.
What went wrong for PBKS after a flying start?
Punjab Kings looked like one of the strongest teams in the tournament during the first half of the season.
However, things began to collapse after their defeat against RR on April 28.
Since then, PBKS have failed to win a single match and have completely gone off-track.
One of the biggest reasons behind their downfall has been the poor form of their opening batters, who were instrumental earlier in the season, especially during their record 265-run chase against DC.
Apart from the batting struggles, PBKS bowlers have consistently leaked runs in crucial situations.
Their fielding standards have also remained under scrutiny throughout the season, with the side dropping multiple catches in almost every game.
Captain Shreyas Iyer, too, has struggled badly with the bat during the second half of the tournament and has managed to score only one half-century in his last six innings.
With their playoff hopes hanging by a thread, PBKS now face an uphill battle along with the added pressure of depending on several other results.
ADVERTISEMENT
