Punjab Kings were handed their first defeat of 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) season as they were beaten by Rajasthan Royals in New Chandigarh on Tuesday.
Asked to bat first after RR captain Riyan Parag won the toss, PBKS scored 222/4 on the back of 59 off 44 balls by opener Prabhsimran Singh and a fiery innings of 62 from 22 deliveries by Australian all-rounder Marucs Stoinis.
Priyansh Arya (29) and Cooper Connolly (30) played their part for Punjab.
RR's innings was powered by opener Yashavsi Jaiswal getting 51 off 27 deliveries. While Jaiswal's half-century laid the platform for the successful chase, Donovan Ferreira applied the finishing touches with an unbeaten 52 off 26 balls as the team reached the target in 19.2 overs with 6 wickets remaining.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi started the innings in explosive fashion with a 16-ball 43 laced with five sixes and three fours.
Brief Scores:
- Punjab Kings: 222/4 in 20 overs (Prabhsimran Singh 59, Marcus Stoinis 62 not out; Yash Punja 2/41).
- Rajasthan Royals: 228/4 in 19.2 overs (Yashasvi Jasiwal 51, Donovan Ferreira 52 not out; Yuzvendra Chahal 3/36)
IPL Points Table:
| Team | Matches Played | Wins | Losses | No Result | Points | Net Run Rate |
| Punjab Kings (PBKS) | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 1.043 |
| Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) | 8 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 1.919 |
| Rajasthan Royals (RR) | 9 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 12 | 0.617 |
| Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 0.815 |
| Gujarat Titans (GT) | 8 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 8 | -0.475 |
| Chennai Super Kings (CSK) | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 6 | -0.121 |
| Delhi Capitals (DC) | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 6 | -1.060 |
| Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) | 8 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 5 | -0.751 |
| Mumbai Indians (MI) | 7 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 4 | -0.736 |
| Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 4 | -1.106 |
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