IPL 2026 | 'Bowlers exposed at last': How Rajasthan Royals snapped Punjab Kings' record unbeaten streak
Punjab Kings were unbeaten in their first seven matches of IPL 2026 - most by a team in a single season before Rajasthan Royals handed them a six-wicket defeat on Tuesday (Apr 28) in a high-scoring thriller at New Chandigarh stadium.
PBKS suffer first defeat of IPL 2026
Punjab Kings eventually suffered their first defeat of IPL 2026 - losing to Rajasthan Royals by six wickets on Tuesday (Apr 28) at home in New Chandigarh. In 8 matches played, PBKS have six wins, one loss and one no result - totaling to 13 points as sit atop the points table.
PBKS batters continue pristine form
Batting first, PBKS batters continued to make merry as opener Prabhsimran Singh scored 59 off 44 balls. He was was third wicket to be out with team at nearly 150 in 14 overs. He added 37 runs for the opening wicket with Priyansh Arya (29 off 11), 59 with Cooper Conolly (30 off 14) before getting out but not before setting a base of the team.
Stoinis explodes in death overs to boost PBKS innings
Punjab suffered a bit of snag in run rate later in the innings, by their own standards given they have crossed 200-run mark in almost every match, before Marcus Stoinis exploded. After skipper Shreyas Iyer (30 off 27) was dismissed at the completion of 18th over and the team at 181, Stoinis went on to score unbeaten 62 off 22 balls including hitting 24 runs in the final over and took PBKS to 222/4 in 20 overs.
PBKS bowlers eventually fall short
Juxtaposed to their batting, Punjab's bowling has been a cause of concern of them but covered well by their batting. The bowlers, who have conceded 195 or more runs in every match except in team's season opener vs GT (163) and no result match vs KKR, fell short vs Rajasthan Royals as law of averages caught up with PBKS.
Arshdeep Singh - 4-0-68-1
Lockie Ferguson - 4-0-57-0
Marco Jansen - 3.2-0-41-0
Harpreet Brar - 4-0-25-0
Yuzvendra Chahal - 4-0-36-3
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi continues deam season
RR's 15-year-old opener Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who is having a dream IPL 2026, took the chase head on. The southpaw smashed 43 off 16 balls before being dismissed by Arshdeep Singh in the fourth. His innings, however, have a platform to RR for chase as he added 51 runs for the first wicket with his opening partner Yashasvi Jaiswal.
Jaiswal shows he's no slouch either
After Sooryavanshi's dismissal, Jaiswal took over the innings and helped the team add 72 runs more before being out despite Jurel's wicket in between. Jaiswal scored 51 off 27 before going to back to the dressing room and putting RR within 100 runs of win with more than eight overs left.
Donovan Ferreira to rescue
RR were 151/4 in 14 overs, needing 72 runs more in the last six overs when Donovan Ferreira decided he'll take care of the things on the night. He smashed 52 not out off just 26 balls, hitting six fours and three sixes including the one which won them the match. He was also awarded Player of the Match (POTM) for his magical innings under pressure.
Shubham Dubey shows batting prowess
While Ferreira kept the scoreboard going, Shubham Dubey stood tall at the non striker as the perfect partner. He scored 31 unbeaten crucial runs off just 12 balls, hitting three fours and two sixes. He played a pivotal role in 77-run partnership with Ferreira which came off just 32 balls as RR chased down the target in 19.2 overs - handing PBKS their first loss of the season.
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