IPL 2026: Pegged back by back-to-back losses, Punjab Kings hunt momentum vs SRH
After staying unbeaten for more than half of the IPL 2026, Punjab Kings have lost back to back matches. As they take on SRH in their 10th game of the season, assistant coach Brad Haddin hopes that Punjab find much-needed momentum going into the playoffs stage.
Punjab Kings will be hunting for momentum when they face SunRisers Hyderabad in their 10th match of the Indian Premier League. Punjab, who were unbeaten midway through their IPL campaign, have travelled to Hyderabad on the back of back-to-back losses. The Shreyas Iyer-led side were beaten by Rajasthan Royals and then Gujarat Titans, which reeks of a familiar script for the team.
Last season, Punjab had dominated the group stage, only to lose steam in the playoff stages. They were outplayed by Royal Challengers Bengaluru twice and had to settle for second place.
This year, their biggest challenge is to find momentum and carry it into the playoffs. PBKS assistant coach Brad Haddin said that this was an important game for both sides as they look to stitch together a few good performances at this stage of the tournament.
"It’s an important game for both sides. At this stage of the tournament, you want to start stringing good games together, and at the back of those good games, you want to start getting results. And I know from our point of view we’ve had a couple of back-to-back losses," Haddin said at the pre-match press conference.
While Punjab were outplayed by Rajasthan at home, the side fought tooth and nail after being pegged back early by Gujarat Titans in their last game.
Young Suryansh Shedge fought back alongside veteran Marcus Stoinis, taking them to a total of 163 runs. In an era where 200 is regularly chased within 19 overs, Punjab turned the game into a final-over thriller with the ball.
Haddin took confidence from the GT match and said that they would try to build on that and find the required momentum against SRH.
"There are some pleasing things in the last game that we’re really happy with, and now it’s about putting all that together and, let’s be honest, getting back to that winning way where we started the tournament. So it’s important, yeah," Haddin said.
Punjab have already played SRH once this season. At the Mullanpur Stadium, Punjab dominated SRH after an early burst from Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma. After conceding 120 runs in the first eight overs, Punjab restricted SRH to 219/6 and chased the target down in under 19 overs.
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