Punjab Kings (PBKS) looked unstoppable at the start of IPL 2026, but then, they suffered the biggest collapse of the season, leaving fans and experts shocked and disappointed. Recently, PBKS opener Prabhsimran Singh reflected on what went wrong with the franchise.
The Shreyas Iyer-led Punjab Kings team started the IPL 2026 campaign in brilliant fashion that even heard him India captaincy. The PBKS won six matches and built strong momentum in the first half of the season. But they suddenly lost their rhythm and suffered six straight defeats.
Punjab Kings’ dream start turns into nightmare in IPL 2026
It was a dramatic fall for the PBKS that looked like a serious title contender at the first phase of the tournament. Many felt their washout game against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at Eden Gardens on April 12 played a role in their failure to qualify for the IPL 2026 playoffs.
Before rain stopped play, KKR were already under pressure at 25 for 2 in just 3.4 overs. Xavier Bartlett dismissed Finn Allen and Cameron Green cheaply, and Punjab Kings was in a great position. However, the weather had the final say, and the match was washed out, and both teams shared the points.
Prabhsimran Singh refuses to blame KKR match for PBKS exit
Looking back at PBKS’ IPL 2026 campaign, Prabhsimran Singh admitted that the washed-out game against KKR still remains a big talking point, but he made it so nobody can use that abandoned game as an excuse for the team’s failure. However, the explosive opener said that they had a very good chance of winning that match if it had been completed at Eden Gardens.
Prabhsimran Singh was quoted as saying by InsideSport: “The only little thing that comes to mind about that match (vs KKR) is the way our team was playing at that time; we were just winning every match. So, if the full match had happened, we would have won that one as well.
In the end, some might think that it is an excuse, but far from it. We were in that sort of situation; had we won any two matches after that, we would have qualified, and that too in the top 2. But then it would be incorrect to believe that we were ousted because of that one match.”
PBKS were chasing the Top-2 spot: Prabhsimran Singh
The Punjab batter also revealed that the team’s real target was never just a playoff spot. Prabhsimran Singh shared that the PBKS players and team management wanted to finish in the top two positions so they could get an extra chance to reach the IPL final. Unfortunately, things did not go according to plan.
Prabhsimran signed off by saying, “The entire team and the management were targeting the top spot in the points table, but unfortunately for us, things did not go as planned.”
Notably, Prabhsimran is currently part of the India A side that is taking on Sri Lanka A and Afghanistan A in the ongoing one-day tri-series in the island nation. However, he was not part of the India A squad for the two multi-day matches against Sri Lanka A.