PBKS look to close out Dharamsala leg with a turnaround
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Punjab Kings find themselves in a tailspin. The season that began in the same tune as last year with six wins has veered off course, and has now reached a point where there's a threat of not making it back on the road. The fifth of the five successive defeats came just two nights ago in Dharamsala that Shreyas Iyer described as a tough pill to swallow after his team once again failed to defend a 200-run total.
But there's light at the end of the tunnel still as far as he's concerned. "Definitely excited about the next opportunity. An afternoon game and we need to win two out of two - can't wait to play (those matches)," he said after praising Tilak Varma for playing the fields expertly.
PBKS have had a fabulous cycle since the mega auction, with Ricky Ponting walking into the building and refurbishing the culture for good. It made them an exciting batting team and took them all the way to the final last year. But 2026 for PBKS has been about shots of a pensive-looking Ricky Ponting, irked by what he sees on the field from his players. Their catching has been abysmal and bowling too has been sub-par. It's not an easy vocation in this tournament and yet even within that leeway, PBKS have come up short often.
RCB meanwhile, have been floating high in the air even before reaching the beautiful, mountainous venue of Dharamsala. Wins have come, and Virat Kohli put on a grand show of how to follow up two ducks. Like PBKS, RCB too began like a team intent on keeping up the pace of 2025 where they went all the way. But unlike PBKS, they've mostly maintained that gallop - they quickly recovered from the two defeats in early April, and did not let that rut build once they lost a couple of games back to back. As PBKS take them on in their own quest to stay alive, there's a lesson or two on bouncebackability for them to take and implement right away.
When: Sunday, May 17, 2026, 3:30 PM IST
Where: Punjab Kings vs Royal Challengers Bengaluru, HPCA Stadium, Dharamsala
What to expect:A bit of unknown? The venue has favoured the fast bowlers to such an extent that the first game here saw 39 overs of pace and none of spin. PBKS used Yuzvendra Chahal in their next game where the conditions felt much different. But both of those were 7.30 PM starts.
So what's in store for the third game, the first afternoon fixture here? Even PBKS don't know what to expect, reckoned Andrew Leipus (head of sports science, PBKS)
Head-to-head: RCB lead 6-1 since 2023, including Q1 and the final last year. RCB just about have the overall edge as well, leading 19-18 in 37 matches
Team News:
Punjab Kings
Injuries/Unavailability:Lockie Ferguson missed the Delhi Capitals fixture in Dharamsala with a slight niggle, with Ben Dwarshuis filling in. In the following game, Xavier Bartlett featured. On Saturday, Leipus offered optimism about Ferguson's availability when said: "I'm pretty sure we'll have a full squad to choose from."
Tactics & Match-ups:Virat Kohli strikes at 174.13 against Arshdeep Singh but the PBKS quick has often got the better of RCB's No.3 Devdutt Padikkal - dismissing him four times in 43 balls.
Probable XII:Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh, Cooper Connolly, Shreyas Iyer (c), Suryansh Shedge, Shashank Singh, Azmatullah Omarzai, Marco Jansen, Harpreet Brar, Lockie Ferguson, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal
Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Injuries/Unavailability: No new known absences for the table-toppers.
Tactics & Match-ups:Bhuvneshwar Kumar matches up well against each of PBKS' top-three - he has conceded 24 (25) to Priyansh Arya and has dismissed Prabhsimran Singh five times in 57 deliveries, giving away 88 runs. Against the veteran quick, Shreyas Iyer has fallen thrice and scored 45 off 50 balls. Iyer has fallen to Josh Hazlewood four times in 22 deliveries.
Probable XII: Jacob Bethell, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (c), Tim David, Jitesh Sharma, Venkatesh Iyer, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rasikh Salam Dar, Jacob Duffy, Josh Hazlewood
Did you know:
- Virat Kohli's strike rate in the first 10 balls of IPL 2026 is 172.81. In his last outing in Dharamsala, he scored 92 (47).
- Bhuvneshwar Kumar has the best economy rate in the Powerplay in IPL 2026 (minimum 10 overs): 6.92
- PBKS are one of only four teams to use the same opening pair all through IPL 2026. Arya and Prabhsimran also have the best opening partnership run-rate this season - with 12.94.
What they said:
I think the altitude [in Dharamsala] does play some role. Perhaps it might favour us because we've been here longer. We've had a longer time to acclimatise and adapt to the conditions. I'm hoping that might be the case. I think historically it hasn't been the best ground for us. Again, we can just hope for the best and turn it around. The ball travels a bit faster. The guys have to maybe feel differently. The wicket in the last match was different to the wicket in the first game." - Andrew Leipus, PBKS' head of sports science