With the bat swinging freely in the Dharamshala breeze, the Punjab Kings bowlers were more focused on bowling the ball down the hill of the HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala than testing Delhi Capitals’ shaky middle order. The Shreyas Iyer-led side faltered in their defense against struggling DC on Monday, May 11, conceding 17 runs and 1 no ball in the wides.

PBKS’s bowling unit crumbled under pressure, turning the defendable total into yet another collapse in execution in a rapidly fading campaign. Their inability to control lines, create sustained pressure or seize crucial moments highlighted the recurring lapses that have plagued Punjab throughout the season.

The 18 extra players alone reflect the chaos in their bowling plans. This included dropped chances, inconsistent lengths and PBKS once again found themselves losing control of the game, which they had held tightly to in the powerplay.

PBKS faces fourth consecutive defeat After a magical unbeaten start to the 2026 Indian Premier League season.

“I don’t want to beat around the bush. I would just say fielding and bowling,” Iyer said after the match against DC.

PBKS bowling fails to raise capital

Punjab’s bowling has been a constant area of ​​concern throughout the season. They have taken the fewest wickets among all teams in the competition, a worrying statistic that has consistently highlighted their inability to break partnerships at crucial stages. Their problems have been made worse by poor fielding support, as PBKS also lead the charts in terms of most catches dropped this season.

Against Delhi, their lack of penetration after the powerplay hurt them. PBKS had restricted DC to 33 for 3 at the start of the chase, with the fast bowlers making little movement and making mistakes under lights. But once the ball became soft, Punjab’s attack completely lost direction.

The biggest turning point came when PBKS failed to capitalize after the run out of Tristan Stubbs. When Delhi was 74 for 4, Axar Patel got a lease of life on 25 when Arshdeep Singh missed a regulation chance. Punjab have consistently suffered from their inability to convert half-chances into wickets this season and these lapses have proved equally damaging.

Before this match, Akshar had been able to score only 44 runs in the entire season on 59 balls at a strike rate of 74.57. Yet PBKS allowed them to settle through loose lines and poor execution in the middle overs. Once they found the rhythm against the fast bowlers, the target completely tilted in favor of Delhi.

Axar recorded his first fifty-plus score of the season and set the stage for Delhi to complete the most successful target chase in the history of the HPCA Stadium.

Even after Akshar’s departure, PBKS failed to regain control. Marco Jansen’s 16th over became the defining moment of the chase as David Miller dismantled Punjab’s death bowling with ease. Miller scored 15 runs in the over and in the next over he dismissed Ben Dwarshuis with consecutive sixes. At the time of his death the contradictions between the two parties were deep. Miller increased the troubles for PBKS by adding 51 runs in just 28 balls.

What should have been a tense finish soon became a comfortable chase as PBKS failed to generate even a brief pressure in the final overs.

“I always say that hard length, short of hard length is the best ball, especially when a new batsman is coming in,” Iyer said. “It is not easy to hit because if you keep repeating those balls there are chances of getting a wrong hit and you may get a wicket. We lack planning.”

spin could have helped

There will also be questions on Punjab’s bowling strategy. PBKS bowled seven overs collectively to Marcus Stoinis and Yash Thakur, who scored 99 runs for just three wickets despite Yuzvendra Chahal being available.

On why he did not utilize Yuzi’s services, Shreyas said, “There was definitely an idea. But the way the ball was seaming for the seamers, if we had executed our plans accurately, we could have got wickets.”

to be fair, Delhi Capitals adopted a similar template. He also left out frontline spinner Kuldeep Yadav and relied almost entirely on pace. In fact, DC captain Akshar Patel also did not bowl.

Akshar said after the game, “The wicket was behaving differently today. After the first few overs, especially when Auqib Nabi bowled, I felt the ball was swinging and seaming as well.” “Even when I gave extra overs to Madhav and Auqib, something was happening with the ball. So, I thought if the fast bowlers were getting help, I should continue using them instead of bringing myself forward.”

The game saw 39 overs of seam bowling, the second highest total IPL The history following Royal Challengers Bangalore vs Chennai Super Kings in 2008, underlines how strongly both teams understand the conditions.

However, the main difference was the execution. Delhi’s fast bowlers adjusted quickly, tightened their lengths and eventually forced Punjab into constant risks. PBKS, on the other hand, despite seeing similar assistance from the ball early on, gradually lost discipline as the innings progressed.

For Punjab, this was not a mere defeat due to missed opportunities. It was another reminder that their bowling unit continues to crumble under pressure. In Dharamshala,

PBKS didn’t just lose one game, their bowling failures pushed them further down in the play-off race.

ipl 2026 | ipl schedule | ipl points table | ipl player stats | purple cap | orange cap | ipl video | cricket news | live score

– ends