Punjab Kings\u2019 (PBKS) rise in IPL 2026 has been powered largely by their explosive batting, but Tuesday\u2019s match against Rajasthan Royals (RR) proved that even a strong batting display can be undone when the bowlers don\u2019t quite close the gap. Fast-bowling coach James Hopes kept his message measured, suggesting the side simply needed to \u201ctidy up a few things,\u201d yet Piyush Chawla was more direct\u2014calling PBKS\u2019 first loss of the season an \u201ceye opener.\u201d Both Chawla and Abhinav Mukund also flagged Arshdeep Singh\u2019s current form as a \u201cconcern.\u201d<\/p>\n
Arshdeep\u2014long a key figure in PBKS\u2019 pace unit and the spearhead of their fast-bowling group\u2014has managed only eight wickets from eight matches so far, with an economy rate of 10.96. He has also sent down the most wides among his PBKS peers, having bowled 19 so far. Looking wider across the tournament, among the 33 bowlers who have delivered at least 120 balls this season, Arshdeep is the only one to have conceded more than 10% of his deliveries as wides: 19 out of 180 legal deliveries (10.56%). Eshan Malinga is next on the list with 16 out of 162 (9.88%).<\/p>\n
\u201cA concern. Because Arshdeep Singh, no matter how many runs he leaks, he comes back in the death, nails the yorkers. We\u2019ve always known Arshdeep to be a very, very good yorker bowler,\u201d Abhinav said on ESPNcricinfo\u2019s TimeOut. \u201cI don\u2019t mind him going for those wide, because he targets those wide lines. [But] today I felt that the plan wasn\u2019t right.\u201d<\/p>\n
In the RR game, Arshdeep bowled just one wide; however, he still leaked plenty of runs, conceding 68 in his four overs. His figures across the spells read 15 and 22 in the two powerplay overs, 14 in the 15th over, and 17 in the 18th.<\/p>\n
Chawla pointed out that Arshdeep\u2019s usual role at the start of innings has not been delivering results. \u201cHe\u2019s somebody who\u2019s known to strike with the new ball, and that hasn\u2019t been happening. In the match where he gets wickets with the new ball, he ends up producing a wonderful spell\u2014like what happened against MI [3 for 22]. But this season, he\u2019s going at almost 11 runs per over. I understand he bowls those difficult overs in the powerplay and then at the death, but he\u2019s still your premium bowler,\u201d Chawla said.<\/p>\n
\u201cA match or two here and there, you can expect [him to struggle], but it\u2019s occurring too often. That\u2019s why it becomes a concern, because when you\u2019re thinking about the bigger picture\u2014heading into the playoffs\u2014you need to ask what happens if something like this shows up in a knockout game. Then you\u2019re forced into a chase and a catch-up situation instead of being in control.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chawla also described the defeat as a useful warning sign. \u201cThe loss to RR is good\u2014it\u2019s like an eye-opener. Even in the DC [Delhi Capitals] game\u2014yes, I know the record, the chase, and everything\u2026 and it was a good wicket\u2014but if you\u2019re giving away 265 [264], that\u2019s still something to worry about. PBKS chased down DC\u2019s 264 with seven balls left in that match.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hopes, meanwhile, addressed PBKS\u2019 bowling issues at length during the post-match press conference. \u201cFirst things first: yes, we are conceding [a lot of runs], but I believe we\u2019ve had pitches that have suited us [and] we\u2019ve done okay. I\u2019m not saying the wicket didn\u2019t suit our bowling attack\u2014only that it\u2019s a very good surface. It\u2019s flat and the ball is moving quickly.\u201d<\/p>\n
He added that PBKS entered the RR contest with a slightly altered approach. \u201cWe went in with a slightly different look tonight. Our two spinners, Yuzvendra Chahal and Harpreet Brar, bowled really well. We also got Lockie Ferguson into the tournament, which is a positive heading into the final stretch with six pool games left.\u201d<\/p>\n
Hopes also suggested that match conditions might have forced fast bowlers into a tougher rhythm. \u201cWe\u2019ve got things we can tidy up, but I feel that the cricket being played right now\u2014especially in the first six overs\u2014is hard for fast bowlers. Brar bowled a lovely over today [two runs in the fifth over], so maybe spin could be an option. But once again, if we get suitable conditions and the ball swings a bit, then we\u2019ll be fine.\u201d<\/p>\n
After winning six of their first seven matches, with one washout in the mix, PBKS had looked like they were cruising. They still sit at the top of the table, but this single defeat has started to expose cracks that had previously been covered up.<\/p>\n
Hopes summed up the moment as both a setback and a chance to reset. \u201cIt\u2019s a reality check, and that\u2019s exactly what it is. Yes, we\u2019ve been flying\u2014we\u2019ve been winning\u2014and it\u2019s been brilliant. The environment is still great. And look, one loss is part of cricket; you\u2019re not going to play through the IPL without dropping a game. But now it\u2019s happened, and we\u2019ve got a few days to regroup before we face GT [Gujarat Titans] on May 3.\u201d<\/p>\n
He concluded: \u201cIt\u2019s about getting back to work\u2014training for a couple of days\u2014and then ironing out a few kinks, figuring out the best combination for the conditions we\u2019ll get and the opposition we\u2019ll face over the next couple of matches.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Punjab Kings\u2019 (PBKS) rise in IPL 2026 has been powered largely by their explosive batting, but Tuesday\u2019s match against Rajasthan Royals (RR) proved that even…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":6163,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_title":"IPL 2026: PBKS vs RR Chawla Exposes Bowling Gaps","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"PBKS\u2019 batting firepower wasn\u2019t enough vs RR as Piyush Chawla exposed bowling gaps, handing Punjab their first IPL 2026 loss.","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6165","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ipl"],"yoast_head":"\n