Heinrich Klaasen and Ishan Kishan made PBKS pay for their fielding blunders.
Punjab Kings (PBKS) suffered their third successive IPL 2026 defeat, losing to Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) by 33 runs at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on Wednesday (May 6).
Asked to bat first, SRH posted a massive 235/4 in 20 overs, driven by explosive fifties from Heinrich Klaasen (69 off 43) and Ishan Kishan (55 off 32). Earlier, the opening duo of Abhishek Sharma (35 off 13) and Travis Head (38 off 19) produced fiery knocks to set the tone while Nitish Kumar Reddy chipped in with a cameo of 13-ball 29.
During the chase, PBKS got off to a terrible start, losing three wickets for just 23 runs inside the powerplay. While Cooper Connolly smashed an unbeaten century (107* off 59), he lacked support from the other end as the visitors were eventually restricted to 202/7.
Speaking after the game, PBKS skipper Shreyas Iyer cited dropped catches as the primary reason for the team’s defeat.
Notably, Connolly, Shashank Singh and Lockie Ferguson’s fielding blunders allowed Kishan and Klaasen to dominate with the bat. While Kishan was dropped twice by Connolly and Ferguson when he was batting on 9 and 18 respectively, Shashank made a mess of an easy chance when Klaasen was batting on 23.
“I think it was a bit too much (the target) because we dropped many catches at the start and we could have easily delayed their score by 30 to 40 runs, I guess. Because the wicket kept getting slower and the cutters were holding up a bit. So we weren't that comprehensive enough on the field, nor in bowling, nor in batting. So I think they played comprehensive cricket and they showed us how to win the match,” Shreyas said during the post-match presentation.
PBKS had a dominant initial phase (6 wins in 7 games) before falling into a slump, with this loss causing them to lose their top spot. However, Iyer urged the team to keep a positive outlook and maintain the same top-notch mindset that brought them early success.
“I feel we got a fairytale start in this tournament and everyone were in a great space and the mindset was top notch. I think it's important that we stick with the same mindset. It's easy to get diverted with talking negative about things. But definitely we got to go back, reflect on things that we didn't do well in the particular last three matches and see to it that we come back strong,” he stated.
Shreyas Iyer commended the fighting spirit of Cooper Connolly, who kept PBKS in the contest almost single-handedly.
“He's phenomenal (Connolly). His mindset is top notch and the character he brings onto the field. It's something that all players can learn from him. And apart from that, I feel that he's got a knack of scoring big runs in pressure situations. He has done it in the past and today was the right example,” Iyer said.
The captain also praised leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal’s attacking approach despite SRH’s aggressive batting display. “He was fearless and his attitude was fantastic against left-handers (Chahal). I asked him to be attacking, especially when the new batsmen were in because they were on the charge right from ball one. And it was crucial to get wickets at that point of time,” Iyer remarked.
He reiterated that fielding lapses cost them dearly against SRH, and stressed the need for the team to reflect and comeback stronger.
“Unfortunately, we weren't able to take catches. I think that was the biggest setback for us in today's game. But definitely something to reflect on and come back stronger,” Iyer concluded.