Dharamshala, May 17 (IANS) Punjab Kings skipper Shreyas Iyer admitted that his side lost the match in the power-play after suffering a 23-run defeat against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in their IPL 2026 clash in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamshala on Sunday.

Chasing a massive target of 223, Punjab Kings were rocked early as Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh, and Shreyas himself were dismissed cheaply inside the first three overs. The early collapse left the hosts struggling at 19/3, making the chase difficult despite a spirited fightback later in the innings.

“Obviously, they got off to a great start and then started taking on the bowlers right after the power play. I think getting to 222 was a commendable performance, and we weren’t able to take wickets in the bowling that much, but yeah, I think the match was lost in the powerplay,” Iyer said after the game.

Punjab Kings eventually finished at 199/8 despite aggressive knocks from Shashank Singh and Marcus Stoinis. Shashank smashed 56 off just 27 deliveries while Stoinis contributed 37 off 25 balls, but the required run rate proved too steep after the early damage.

Reflecting on the difficult chase, Shreyas pointed to the absence of strong starts from openers Arya and Prabhsimran, both of whom had been among the team’s most consistent performers this season.

“Absolutely. We were three down, and the majority of our run scorers were Prabhsimran and Priyansh. The starts they used to give us in the power play, obviously, we couldn’t get this time, and also me coming in and getting out early,” he said.

“Really disappointed, but commendable performance by Shashank and Stoinis, and also a few others in the middle. I think we were up there with almost 10 and over, but yeah, fell short. Tremendous bowling by Bhuvi and Hazlewood,” he added.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar provided RCB the perfect start with two wickets in the opening overs, while Josh Hazlewood picked up important breakthroughs in the middle and death overs to stop Punjab Kings’ recovery.

The defeat also confirmed Royal Challengers Bengaluru as the first team to qualify for the IPL 2026 playoffs, with RCB moving to 18 points from 13 matches.

Despite the setback, Shreyas remained optimistic about Punjab Kings’ chances going forward and said he would continue to maintain a positive mindset ahead of their next game against Lucknow Super Giants.

“No, definitely. I’m always positive irrespective of the results. It doesn’t dictate how my personality is, and I always approach with a strong attitude,” he said. “I’m not someone who dwells too much in the past. This is over, this is gone. Tomorrow again I’m going to see the sunrise, and there’s always light at the end of the tunnel,” he added.

With this loss, PBKS’ qualification chances look very slim. They have to beat LSG in their final match and then depend on other teams’ results to also go in their favour, as they can now reach a maximum of 15 points.

–IANS

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