Punjab Kings started their IPL 2026 campaign with a commanding win over Gujarat Titans at their home ground. Gujarat Titans were batting first and struggled their way to 162/6 at the end of the first innings. It was a disappointing effort from the Gujarat Titans batters and they just could not go with everyone struggling to maintain a good tempo. It was a below par score and Punjab Kings continued their aggressive approach with the bat from the previous edition. Debutant Cooper Connolly stole the show with a composed half century which helped the chase down the target despite losing wickets in the middle overs.
Gujarat Titans’ Struggles with the Bat
Gujarat Titans captain Shubman Gill: I think we bowled pretty well, but I think we just didn't get going in the last five or six overs, I'd say. Batting, it never looked like a 210-220 wicket. But I think if we would have had maybe 175, 180 was the target in the middle. Once the ball got older, it was difficult to hit it down the ground. In the second innings, rain continued, making the ball wet, which slightly improved batting conditions. So I don't think it stopped as much in the second innings. But nonetheless, I think we did a decent job. We kept the pressure on. I could've (on delaying Prasidh's introduction), but he came at the right time, took wickets and kept us in the game until the 17th and 18th over. All ifs and buts, but at that time, we thought, you know, with the wicket going a little bit slow, maybe a bowler who's quick and skinny might get us a few wickets. And he was bowling pretty well in the nets. So that was the thought process behind it. As for Ashok (Sharma), he works hard on the game, he's a good find for us. He bowled pretty well up front and I think in the back, he's definitely someone that, you know, I think as he keeps playing more matches and keeps getting more experience, he'll be very valuable for us. He's someone who works very hard, you know, on his game and is a pretty good fielder for us. And I actually met him during the camp a couple of months ago and I was very impressed by the way he was bowling with the new ball as well. Hopefully, he'll get a chance in some of the matches to show some of his skills with the new ball. Well done, boys. Hard luck and it wasn't the game for us, but I think we did decently well. It's just, you know, keep getting better and keep adding more intensity and keep giving your best. (on what he'd say to his team after today's defeat).
Xavier Bartlett: Yeah, it probably a bit of luck, to be honest. I tried to set myself up coming out there with Coops, you know, at the other end, who was hitting it pretty well, and he just said, you know, if you see the ball in the area, try and go after it, and you know, lucky enough, it came off. Yeah, obviously you know trying to take my fielding and grew up playing Australian rules football back home, so you know, a bit of a mark in the goal square there and hopefully went back and kicked the goal. But it was great to get the win tonight in front of the home crowd. No, I don’t know about that. Just lucky it stuck. It’s just one of those ones that stuck. So, yeah, pretty happy with it. Yeah, it was obviously nice to come out here. First game of the tournament. It started off really strong off the back end of last year. It started off in a winning way, especially in front of our home crowd. It’s a really nice feeling.
Punjab Kings captain Shreyas Iyer Injury Update
It's nice (on his hand injury). Some of the shots he played was surreal. I was focusing on my hand and suddenly we lost wickets back-to-back. You have to remain calm. Cooper has got a great mindset and hope he continues his form. After the 3rd over, we realised the wicket is playing slow. We tried to make the ball old as quickly as possible. (On Vyshak) He is carrying forward the form that he performed in the final last year. He's a big match player. We need to carry this momentum going forward. I was (surprised on seeing the short leg fielder when he walked in to bat).
Read Also:- Shreyas Iyer Injury
Player of the match, Cooper Connolly
I was just looking forward to play with world-class players. Superb performance from the team. (On his six-hitting) I am more of a tempo player. Working with Ricky has been great. Looking forward to the rest of the tournament. Not a lot was said, I was pretty relaxed. Marco was calm and so was Xavier. That's the first time I played him (Rashid) and I was trying to enjoy.
Punjab Kings look a very strong side and have made the right start to this season. They will be keen to go all the way this season and have plenty of positives to work on from this match. On the other hand, it was a disappointing start for Gujarat Titans and they will have plenty of concerns and need to make a quick turnaround. They lacked power with the bat in the game today and got a below par total. The bowlers did decently but the Gujarat Titans will be hoping to bounce back in the next game.
