IPL 2026 review: From table-toppers to playoff exit — how PBKS’ season unravelled

Punjab Kings entered IPL 2026 carrying monolithic expectations aft finishing runners-up the erstwhile play nether the enactment of Shreyas Iyer. For astir fractional the tournament, PBKS looked similar the astir implicit and fearless broadside successful the competition.

They won six of their opening 7 matches, portion 1 crippled ended successful a no-result, and spent 22 days astatine the apical of the array looking destined for a top-two finish.Their run adjacent produced 1 of the top chases successful T20 past erstwhile they stunned Delhi Capitals by successfully chasing 265, leaving KL Rahul’s 152 successful vain. It genuinely felt similar Punjab had yet built a broadside susceptible of winning the IPL title.What followed was 1 of the astir melodramatic collapses successful the IPL history.

Punjab mislaid six consecutive matches successful the 2nd fractional of the season, wholly losing momentum astatine the worst imaginable time. Despite winning their last league game, PBKS yet finished 5th connected the table, conscionable 1 constituent abbreviated of qualification.Heading into the last league day, PBKS inactive had a playoff accidental alive. Punjab needed Rajasthan Royals to suffer against Mumbai Indians to sneak into the apical four. But RR held their nerves, sealed qualification, and Punjab’s run officially came to an end.

A broadside that erstwhile looked untouchable someway managed to get eliminated successful the league stage.

Main reasons down Punjab Kings missing the IPL 2026 playoffs

1. Bowling illness wholly derailed their campaignPunjab’s biggest weakness passim IPL 2026 was unquestionably their bowling attack. While the batting portion consistently posted competitory totals, the bowlers simply failed to support them.Statistically, PBKS had 1 of the weakest bowling seasons successful the tournament:

These numbers reflected a bowling portion that neither created unit nor consistently took wickets.PBKS crossed the 200-run people 10 times during the season, yet inactive mislaid aggregate games from winning positions. They failed to support 200-plus totals connected assorted occasions, exposing their inability to adjacent retired matches nether pressure.Their decease bowling became a recurring nightmare. Punjab mislaid 3 matches successful the last implicit itself, including games against Gujarat Titans and Rajasthan Royals wherever they looked firmly successful control.

Those constrictive defeats yet became the quality betwixt qualification and elimination.

2. Overdependence connected gait and underuse of spinPunjab’s bowling strategy itself appeared flawed passim the season. The absorption leaned heavy towards seam bowling and hardly trusted their rotation attack, adjacent connected adust surfaces wherever spinners usually dominate.PBKS spinners bowled lone 59 overs each season, the fewest by immoderate squad successful IPL 2026.

That tactical determination wounded them severely successful the mediate overs wherever absorption batters often attacked freely without scoreboard pressure.Much of the work rested connected Yuzvendra Chahal, but the seasoned leg-spinner endured a frustrating season. Chahal picked up 12 wickets successful 14 matches astatine an system of 9.39, but the numbers lone told portion of the story.There were respective matches wherever Iyer amazingly did not adjacent let Chahal to implicit his afloat quota of 4 overs, reflecting the management’s deficiency of spot successful their pb spinner during unit situations.

Chahal besides suffered due to the fact that of mediocre fielding support. A staggering 8 catches were dropped disconnected his bowling crossed the season, severely hurting his wicket tally and rhythm.Punjab’s refusal to consistently backmost rotation became 1 of the large tactical errors of their campaign.Ironically, the astir economical spinner successful the squad, Harpreet Brar, featured successful lone 2 games contempt maintaining an system of 7.50.3. Arshdeep and the gait onslaught failed to dominateArshdeep Singh finished arsenic Punjab’s highest wicket-taker with 14 wickets successful 14 games, but adjacent his run reflected the struggles of the bowling unit. The left-arm pacer conceded runs astatine an system of 10.20 and failed to supply regular breakthroughs successful the powerplay.For ample parts of the season, Arshdeep looked similar a shadiness of the bowler who has go 1 of India’s premier T20 pacers.Marco Jansen besides failed to warrant expectations. The South African all-rounder managed lone 9 wickets successful 13 games portion conceding astatine 10.20 per over. His contributions with the bat were minimal too, scoring conscionable 51 runs astatine an mean of 12.75 and onslaught complaint of 113.33.Vijayakumar Vyshak struggled for consistency, portion Lockie Ferguson mislaid the assurance of the absorption aft repeated costly spells.The deficiency of a reliable wicket-taking bowler and dependable decease specializer wholly exposed Punjab during the concern extremity of the tournament.4. Fielding errors shattered momentumIf bowling was Punjab’s biggest method weakness, fielding was their biggest intelligence problem.PBKS dropped 16 catches from 56 opportunities, 1 of the worst records successful the league. Several of those mistakes straight outgo them matches.Coach Ricky Ponting admitted that the mediocre catching dispersed done the dressing country “like a virus,” portion Iyer described it arsenic the “biggest setback of the season.”The mistakes kept repeating crossed venues and conditions, creating a tense ambiance wrong the squad during crunch moments.5. Middle-order inconsistency wounded them badlyWhile Punjab’s apical bid performed strongly, their mediate and little bid failed to consistently present nether pressure.Apart from Iyer, nary middle-order batter regularly stepped up during hard situations. Once aboriginal wickets fell, PBKS often looked vulnerable.The absorption expected players similar Marcus Stoinis and others to supply finishing stability, but those contributions came lone successful patches. During the 2nd fractional of the season, Punjab repeatedly mislaid momentum successful the mediate overs aft beardown starts from the apical order.This is 1 country PBKS are expected to code aggressively successful the adjacent auction. Punjab volition apt people an experienced middle-order batter susceptible of batting betwixt No.5 and No.7 and finishing games calmly nether pressure.6. Change successful location venues disrupted momentumAnother underrated origin down Punjab’s illness was the determination to divided their location games betwixt Mullanpur and Dharamsala during the season.PBKS looked settled and ascendant portion playing successful Mullanpur, wherever their assertive batting attack perfectly suited the conditions. But erstwhile the tourney entered the concern extremity and the squad shifted basal to Dharamsala, their momentum wholly disappeared.

Punjab mislaid each 3 matches astatine the venue, which efficaciously ended their playoff hopes.Ravichandran Ashwin heavy criticised the Punjab Kings absorption for changing location venues mid-season, calling it 1 of the large reasons down their precocious collapse. Ashwin pointed retired that palmy IPL teams usually physique consistency astir 1 venue and 1 acceptable of conditions, thing PBKS failed to do.The displacement besides exposed Punjab’s bowling weaknesses further.

Dharamsala offered antithetic conditions, but PBKS continued with the aforesaid combinations and tactics contempt already struggling severely with the ball.At a signifier wherever momentum and familiarity became crucial, Punjab’s venue power lone added much instability to a run that was already opening to unravel.

IPL 2026: PBKS' Report Card

Batting: 8/10Punjab’s batting remained 1 of the strongest units successful IPL 2026 and was the superior crushed they stayed successful playoff contention for truthful long.Prabhsimran Singh emerged arsenic their highest run-scorer, smashing 510 runs successful 14 matches astatine an mean of 42.50 and onslaught complaint of 168.87. His assertive starts regularly enactment absorption bowlers nether pressure.Iyer himself enjoyed an outstanding play astatine No.4, scoring 498 runs astatine an mean of 55.33 and onslaught complaint of 168.81 portion besides handling captaincy responsibilities impressively.Connolly enjoyed a breakthrough debut season, scoring 491 runs astatine an mean of 44.64 and onslaught complaint of 163.12, becoming 1 of Punjab’s astir reliable batters.Priyansh Arya showed flashes of brilliance and finished with 364 runs astatine a staggering onslaught complaint of 211. However, his inconsistency became disposable successful the 2nd fractional of the play erstwhile his returns dropped significantly.Overall, Punjab’s batting remained beardown capable to situation for the playoffs. The existent occupation was that their bowling portion consistently fto them down.Bowling: 3.5/10Punjab arguably had the weakest bowling onslaught successful IPL 2026.The deficiency of wicket-taking ability, mediocre system rates, lack of power successful the mediate overs, and inability to execute plans astatine the decease wholly derailed their campaign.Fielding: 3/10Fielding errors repeatedly outgo PBKS important moments and yet invaluable points.Dropped catches, missed opportunities, and tense assemblage connection became a recurring taxable during their losing streak.For a squad chasing a title, their standards successful the tract simply were not acceptable.Captaincy and coaching: 7.5/10Iyer and Ponting merit recognition for transforming Punjab into an assertive and entertaining side. The fearless batting attack and assurance wrong the radical during the archetypal fractional of the play were large positives.However, tactical concerns astir bowling combinations, rotation usage, and crippled absorption nether unit yet became costly.

What adjacent for Punjab Kings?

Despite the achy collapse, Punjab inactive person a beardown instauration moving forward.Their apical bid looks settled, Iyer has brought enactment stability, and young players similar Prabhsimran, Priyansh Arya, and Connolly showed that PBKS person an breathtaking batting halfway for the future.But if Punjab genuinely privation to situation for the IPL rubric successful 2027, they indispensable rebuild their bowling onslaught astir entirely.Expect PBKS to aggressively target: