Punjab Kings slumped to their fifth straight loss in IPL 2026 after they were beaten by Mumbai Indians by six wickets in Dharamsala on Thursday. PBKS skipper Shreyas Iyer said the loss was a “tough pill to swallow”, while crediting Tilak Varma whose 75-run unbeaten knock clinched the win for MI.
“Well, absolutely a tough pill to swallow, but I don’t want to pinpoint at any situation over here because it was a great game of cricket. Well fought game,” Shreyas said after the defeat.
The Punjab skipper lauded Tilak’s match-winning innings and said, “He played amazing, he was selecting his shots pretty well, and he maneuvered the field nicely, so credit to him.”
Shreyas also credited Azmatullah Omarzai (38 off 17 balls) for giving momentum to Punjab’s innings in the end overs, and taking it to a competitive total of 200.
“Certainly, at a point, we were looking at around 170 to 180, and from there on, he simply changed the momentum towards us. Getting those scoops of sixes, and from 16th or 17th over, from there on, we gained the momentum and getting to 200 was a commendable performance for him,” he said.
PBKS had a great start to their campaign by remaining unbeaten in seven games and were favourites to qualify first for the playoffs. But with five straight defeats they find themselves in a tricky situation where they need to win their remaining two matches to make it to the playoffs.
“Definitely excited for the next opportunity. It’s an afternoon game, and we’ve got to win two out of two. It’s going to be an exciting two games. Can’t wait to play them,” said Shreyas, referring to the upcoming clash against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Sunday at the same venue.
Player of the Match Tilak said his international exposure has given him an edge when it comes to chasing targets under pressure.
“To be honest, I do like to finish games, but having played the WC and some international games, I’ve come to know how to finish the games,” he said.
The left-hander said the pitch was tricky than they had expected. “We didn’t expect the wicket to be like this, the ball was slow and low, it wasn’t easy to play shots. We saw how PBKS struggled in the first 15 overs, then Azamatullah and Vishnu Vinod took them to a good score.”
Tilak said he consciously planned to take the chase deep and credited Will Jacks to come in and finish the game.
“I thought I would take the game deep. I spoke to the coach at the second break; I just needed one big over and I could finish the game.
“Will’s innings helped finish the game, I just told him to hold shape and wait for the slower one. The altitude here helps the ball fly and you don’t need to blindly slog,” Tilak said.
Stand-in Mumbai skipper Jasprit Bumrah said Shardul Thakur and Tilak deserve equal credit for their brilliant show in the match.
“Both teams played good cricket and we really pulled back well. Holding your length was key. That was the plan and credit to all bowlers, they kept their nerve. I think Tilak’s knock and the way Shardul bowled, both deserve equal credit. Tilak kept his shape, Jacks also contributed,” he said.
After having led India in Tests, T20Is and now a IPL match, Bumrah jokingly said only ODI remains for him to lead.
“I have captained a Test match, I have captained T20s and now the only game left is ODI cricket, but I don’t see that happening,” he said.
“Jokes apart, very happy. Had good fun, good weather, great ground so enjoyed my time.”
