Follow UsIt was theirs, until it wasn’t.
For 28 overs, Punjab Kings had played the perfect final. Shreyas Iyer won what felt like a decisive toss, and an outstanding bowling performance, where meticulously crafted plans were executed to perfection, helped the Kings restrict a destructive Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to 190 on a belter of a surface. 191 was going to be a tough chase, but it was on this very ground that PBKS had chased 204 with an over to spare.
And at the end of the 8-over mark, placed at 70/1, Punjab could almost peek at the finish line. There was Josh Inglis batting like a dream. There was Prabhsimran Singh looking set to explode. There was Shreyas Iyer yet to come. And there was a deep batting line-up waiting, one that batted all the way till No.8.
But just like that, the dream came crashing down. It did not just crash, it crashed and burned. The most destructive batting line-up in the tournament, the unit that scorched bowling line-ups for fun and at will, crumbled at the worst time imaginable. And in the blink of an eye, ecstasy turned into agony, and Punjab were living their worst nightmare before they could realise it.
It’s a defeat that will sting like no other. For 11 years, this was a franchise that did not even make it to the playoffs, let alone get close to the title. This was a franchise which, for an entire decade, was the laughing stock of the entire Indian Premier League.
But in came Shreyas Iyer and Ricky Ponting, and in the span of 45 days, the entire identity of the franchise was changed. At around 9:45 PM today in Ahmedabad, Punjab were 12 overs and 121 runs away from creating history and getting their hands on that coveted title for the first time ever.
But it’s back to square one now. Punjab Kings still have no title. They will start IPL 2026 as one of two OG teams to have never won the IPL. Holy Pair? Sacred Duo? Celestial Couple? Call it what you want, but both Punjab and Delhi will inevitably be called names at the start of IPL 2026. Maybe they’ll still be a part of the Holy Trinity, joined by the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG).
But here’s the deal, though. Even though this might seem like doom and gloom, it’s not the end for Punjab. For, their journey has started, and this is a team that will surely come close to the title before this cycle ends.
As disappointing as the night might be, it’s worth taking a step back and reflecting on what this young team has achieved, and what the future holds.
The starting XII that took to the field tonight against RCB featured as many as five uncapped players, which was three more than their counterparts RCB, and two more than the playing XI of the other two sides which made it to the playoffs, Gujarat Titans and Mumbai Indians.
And these weren’t just uncapped players who were there to fill the gaps; these uncapped players were their star performers who carried the side.
Between them, the openers Prabhsimran Singh and Priyansh Arya scored 1024 runs in the season, and it was once again these two who gave the upper hand to the side in the final and put them in a position of control.
Shashank Singh needs no introduction anymore, while both Vyshak Vijaykumar and Nehal Wadhera played crucial hands throughout the season. It might not have happened for Wadhera on the night, and his innings will unquestionably give him sleepless nights for another year, but he’s not the first and won’t be the last talented batter to play a match-losing knock in a final. Hell, Virat Kohli played one tonight before Wadhera unfortunately outdid him.
But that takes nothing away from what he did up until the final. Despite the unfortunate happenings of Tuesday night, Wadhera is here to stay for Punjab, and he will be better and stronger come IPL 2026.
What should excite Punjab fans is that, of these aforementioned names, Shashank is the only individual over 30. The rest are only going to get better, which is going to make this PBKS core way stronger than what it was this season.
The uncapped (and capped) Indian core is not the only exciting thing for Punjab. Equally, they have an outstanding overseas core, which consists of several players who appear poised for an all-timer season at anytime soon. Inglis (30) and Marco Jansen (25) are both world-class players already, and they are only going to get better over the next couple of years.
Throw in a couple of great additions at the IPL 2026 auction and suddenly, you’re looking at a remarkable squad READY to win the IPL, because the rest of the group already comprises fully complete world-class Indian players in skipper Shreyas, Arshdeep Singh and Yuzvendra Chahal.
Post the game, a clearly broken, disappointed Iyer had this to say: “We have to be here and win the trophy next year.”
Trust me, it’s not a cope. Punjab might have lost both the battle and the war this time around, but they are ready to come again.
This heartbreak might just be the start of something beautiful.