IPL 2026: Shreyas Iyer’s century keeps PBKS’ playoff hopes alive with win over LSG
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "IPL 2026: Shreyas Iyer’s century keeps PBKS’ playoff hopes alive with win over LSG")
Shreyas Iyer hugs teammate Suryansh Shedge Photograph: (AFP)
Shreyas Iyer’s unbeaten 101, following Prabhsimran Singh’s brisk 69, powered PBKS to a successful chase of 197 with two overs remaining as they climbed to fourth place in the standings.
Punjab Kings (PBKS) returned to winning ways in style, ending a run of six straight losses with a commanding seven-wicket triumph over Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at the Ekana Stadium on Saturday (May 23). The result keeps their playoff hopes alive and puts them in a strong position heading into the final phase of the tournament. The win was built on a strong all-round effort, as Marco Jansen and Yuzvendra Chahal claimed two wickets apiece to keep LSG to 196/6, despite a fighting 72 off 44 balls from Josh Inglis.
Chasing the target, Prabhsimran Singh provided early momentum with a fluent 69 from just 39 deliveries before captain Shreyas Iyer took complete control and smashed an unbeaten 101 off 51 balls, his first IPL hundred, as Punjab sealed the chase comfortably before the 19th over.
The win took Punjab Kings to 15 points from 14 league matches and lifted them back to fourth place in the standings.
However, their playoff hopes now depend on other results, as Rajasthan Royals, currently on 14 points, will face Mumbai Indians on Sunday (May 24) and a victory for RR would take them to 16 points and secure the final playoff berth.
Kolkata Knight Riders, who have 13 points, will play Delhi Capitals later in the day, are also still in contention if Rajasthan lose to Mumbai. In that scenario, PBKS and KKR could both finish on 15 points, making net run rate decisive in the race for the last knockout spot.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Gujarat Titans have already qualified for the playoffs.
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Earlier in the match, useful contributions from Josh Inglis (72), Ayush Badoni (43) and Abdul Samad’s unbeaten 37 guided LSG to a competitive 196/6 in their 20 overs.
Punjab Kings endured a shaky start to their chase of 197 as Mohammed Shami made an instant impact on his return, dismissing Priyansh Arya with the very first ball before trapping Cooper Connolly with a sharp swinging delivery.
PBKS, however, bounced back through skipper Shreyas Iyer and Prabhsimran Singh, who steady the innings and their aggressive approach helped Punjab recover to 65/2 at the end of the PowerPlay.
Prabhsimran kept the scoreboard moving with confident strokeplay and reached his half-century in just 28 deliveries, including a 14-run over against Mohsin Khan. He then stitched together a 100-run stand with Shreyas in only 59 balls.
Shreyas also brought up his sixth fifty of the season, all of them coming in run chases. Although Arjun Tendulkar, making his debut for LSG, eventually dismissed Prabhsimran, the PBKS captain carried on the charge and completed his century off the final ball of the chase to seal a comfortable victory for his side.
