Punjab Kings (PBKS) captain Shreyas Iyer criticized his team’s dropped catches after Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) secured a 33-run victory in the 49th Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 fixture. SRH scored 235 for 4 in 20 overs, while PBKS fell short despite a match-winning unbeaten century from Connolly, who scored 107 not out from 59 balls.
Connolly missed a catch of Ishan Kishan in the eighth over when Kishan was on nine runs, followed by Shashank Singh dropping Heinrich Klaasen off Yuzvendra Chahal’s bowling in the next over. Kishan was reprieved again in the 11th over when Lockie Ferguson dropped him on 18. Both Kishan and Klaasen capitalized on these chances, with Klaasen scoring 69 off 43 balls and Kishan 55 off 32.
At the post-match presentation, Iyer said, “It was a bit too much because we dropped catches at the start. The wicket kept getting slower. They played comprehensive cricket and showed us how to win the match. I feel we got a fairytale start in the tournament, and everyone was in a great space. If we are going to continue with the same form, that’s not going to help us.”
He praised Connolly’s performance: “Connolly is phenomenal. His mindset is top-notch. He has a knack for scoring big runs in pressure situations.” Iyer also applauded Chahal’s bowling, saying, “The way Chahal bowled, he was fearless. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to take catches.”
PBKS won the toss and chose to bowl first. SRH had a strong start with contributions from Travis Head (38) and Abhishek Sharma (35), but PBKS had reduced them to 86 for 2 after seven overs before missed catches proved costly. SRH finished with a formidable total, aided by fifties from Klaasen and Kishan.
Chahal was the lone effective bowler for PBKS, taking one wicket for 32 runs in four overs. While chasing 236, PBKS suffered an early collapse to 23 for 3, which hampered their response. Connolly’s unbeaten century marked him as the youngest overseas IPL centurion, but he lacked sufficient support as PBKS ended on 202 for 7.
SRH bowlers Pat Cummins (2/34), Shivang Kumar (2/45), Sakib Hussain (1/40), and Nitish Kumar Reddy (1/11 in 2 overs) shared the wickets to deny PBKS any chance of recovery.
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