The 46th match of the 2026 IPL season at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad delivered a high-octane thriller on Sunday, but the aftermath has been anything but pleasant for Punjab Kings (PBKS) captain Shreyas Iyer. In a contest that swung like a pendulum, Shubman Gill’s Gujarat Titans (GT) managed to chase down a target of 164 with four wickets and just one ball to spare. While the fans celebrated a last-over finish, former India stars have launched a scathing attack on Iyer’s tactical decisions, marking PBKS’s second consecutive defeat in the tournament.
Shreyas Iyer under fire from former India cricketers following PBKS’ consecutive defeats in IPL 2026
The cricketing fraternity, led by legendary opener Virender Sehwag and former KKR mainstay Manoj Tiwary, has pointed fingers at Iyer’s bowling rotations. The primary bone of contention was the underutilization of veteran leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, who was introduced as late as the 14th over and bowled only six deliveries.
Sehwag was blunt in his assessment, suggesting that Iyer’s reliance on his pace battery backfired when it came to the final hurdle. With 11 runs to defend in the last over, Iyer opted for Marcus Stoinis instead of a specialist seamer.
“I think Shreyas Iyer’s calculations were a bit wrong, because he had to give the last over to Stoinis. If that last over was bowled by Arshdeep Singh, Xavier Bartlett, or Marco Jansen, then maybe PBKS could have won this match, because there were 11 runs to defend,” Sehwag stated on Cricbuzz.
Sehwag further emphasized that Chahal should have been used to neutralize GT’s top order earlier in the game.
“It was Shreyas Iyer’s decision to not bowl Chahal, and use his main bowlers till the 19th over, and hope that they take wickets. Even Iyer must have felt that this match might not go till the end like this. Where Chahal should have bowled in the middle overs, he was not used. I think that if he was brought earlier into the attack, then that might have been good. He could have bowled against Buttler,” he added.
Manoj Tiwary echoed these sentiments, highlighting a growing trend where captains hesitate to bowl wrist-spinners against left-handed batters.
“There has been a mistake. According to me, it is not entirely right to blame Shreyas Iyer for that because when Chahal was brought on, he gave away 13 runs. But, he had the call to make to bring him on against two left-handers, because he could have conceded more runs or even not, he had to make that call. But I feel that you should always go with your experienced bowlers. If he gets hit in the first over, then there is no guarantee that he will go for runs again,” Tiwary noted.
PBKS suffer back-to-back losses in IPL 2026 league stage
The scorecard paints a picture of a missed opportunity for Punjab. Batting first, PBKS struggled after a disastrous start that saw Priyansh Arya and Cooper Connolly depart in the very first over. Iyer (19) and Stoinis (40 off 31) tried to rebuild, but it was Suryansh Shedge’s explosive 57 off 29 balls that propelled them to 163/9. Jason Holder was the wrecker-in-chief for GT, finishing with stellar figures of 4/24.
In response, GT’s chase was anchored by Sai Sudharsan, who scored a composed 57 off 41 balls. Despite Arshdeep Singh (2/24) and Vijaykumar Vyshak (2/31) keeping PBKS in the hunt, the match boiled down to the final over. Washington Sundar (40* off 23) and Arshad Khan (8* off 5) remained calm against Stoinis, sealing the win for Gujarat with a score of 167/6 in 19.5 overs. This loss leaves Punjab Kings scrambling for answers as the race for the playoffs intensifies.
