Punjab Kings skipper Shreyas Iyer admitted that while his side enjoyed a “fairytale” start to the 2026 IPL season, their recent slump is a worrying sign heading into the business end of the tournament.

Punjab had emerged as the team to beat with six wins from their first seven matches, but have since suffered three consecutive defeats, including a 33-run loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad here on Wednesday.

“I feel we got a fairytale start in the tournament, and everyone was in a great space. If we are going to continue with the same form, that’s not going to help us,” Iyer said at the post-match presentation.

Punjab Kings’ Fielding Woes

The Kings endured yet another disappointing outing in the field, with dropped catches and missed stumpings proving costly.

“It (the target) was a bit too much because we dropped catches at the start and we could have easily delayed their score by 30 to 40 runs. The wicket kept getting slower. They played comprehensive cricket, and showed us how to win the match.”

Cooper Connolly’s Standout Performance

The lone bright spot for Punjab was Cooper Connolly’s unbeaten century in his debut IPL season.

“Connolly is phenomenal. His mindset is top notch and the character he brings onto the field. It’s something that all players can learn from him. And apart from that, I feel that he’s got a knack of scoring big runs in pressure situations.”

Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Victory

With the win, Sunrisers Hyderabad moved to the top of the points table, and skipper Pat Cummins was pleased with his side’s all-round performance.

“Punjab are a really good side. I thought the batters to get off to what we did was sensational. No matter what the score is, bowling second against that side was clinical,” Cummins said.

“We’re pretty good at playing it at our pace. It’s just trying to max out. It gripped a little bit, which suits our bowlers. We’ve seen it before; we can adjust.”

Cummins’ Impactful Return

The Australian had missed the first few games as he recovered form his back injury and was adjudged the player-of-the-match for his 2/34 that included the prized wickets of his counterpart Iyer and opener Priyansh Arya.

“I fell really good. Came into this fresh. Not much has worked for any team in the powerplay, really. We’ve got lots of options,” Cummins added.

Sanju Samson paced his unbeaten 87 off 52 balls perfectly on a tricky track as Chennai Super Kings kept themselves relevant in the Indian Premier League with an eight-wicket win over a self-destructing Delhi Capitals in New Delhi on Tuesday.

Opting to bat, DC’s struggles with the bat at home continued as they ended up with a below par 155 for seven, on a pitch offering assistance to spinners with odd ball holding up.

Samson and Kartik Sharma (41 not out off 31 balls) forged a 114-run unbroken partnership off 66 balls for the third wicket, taking CSK home in 17.3 overs for their fifth win of the season.

For DC, the road to the play-offs got a lot tougher after their sixth defeat in 10 matches.

While the CSK spin duo of Akeal Hosein and Noor Ahmad excelled, DC’s lead spinner Kuldeep Yadav conceded 34 runs in his three overs. He was hit for four sixes in those 18 balls, releasing all the pressure DC had put on the opposition by limiting them to 44 for one in the powerplay.

While skipper Axar Patel did the containing job well, Kuldeep failed to get a wicket in the middle overs to make it easier for CSK.

Trump card Mitchell Starc was not able to strike early on though Lungi Ngidi removed Ruturaj Gaikwad in his opening over.

It seemed Samson had it all figured out in his head. Having laboured to 15 off his first 17 balls, he targeted Kuldeep post the powerplay to anchor the chase for his team. His innings included half a dozen sixes.

The opener also struck two hundreds in his debut season for the storied franchise.

Earlier, Delhi Capitals’ struggles with the bat at home continued as they faltered on a testing track to end up with a below par 155.

On a pitch offering assistance to the spinners with the odd ball holding up, the home team batters failed to apply themselves.

The free fall began with the loss of opener Pathum Nissanka, who failed to clear the mid-on fielder off a slower ball from left-arm pacer Mukesh Choudhary.

Both Nissanka (19 off 15) and K L Rahul (12 off 13) began with crisp boundaries but did not last long. After Nissanka, Rahul attempted an inside-out hit off left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein but could not get to the pitch of the ball on the charge to be caught by opposition captain Ruturaj Gaikwad.

DC laboured to 37 for two in the powerplay, with Hosein bowling half of the overs including one from the other end that produced the wicket of Rahul.

With DC’s innings not gaining any momentum, the crowd, mostly in yellow supporting CSK and M S Dhoni, who did not even travel for the game, built more pressure on the ‘home team’. Chants of CSK, CSK were heard regularly during the innings.

With a batting performance like that, it seemed DC had not overcome the mental demons of 75 all out in their last game here.

After the powerplay, another spinner Noor Ahmad dominated the opposition, removing Karun Nair and Nitish Rana, who both fell to a poorly executed sweep shot.

DC captain Axar Patel had the ideal opportunity to make an impact with the bat but fell to a soft dismissal, offering a sitter to the cover fielder off a Gurjapneet Singh ball that appeared to stop on him. DC were now reeling at 69 for five in 11 overs.

Tristan Stubbs (38 off 31) and impact player Sameer Rizvi (40 not out off 24) hit a flurry of sixes to take the innings forward in their 65-run stand but the damage done in the first half of the game could not be reversed as DC ended with an underwhelming total.

Mumbai Indians’ bowlers are under scrutiny after failing to defend their highest first-innings total in the Indian Premier League on Wednesday but ​captain Hardik Pandya refused to single them out for ‌blame and said the whole team were accountable.

Five-times champions Mumbai are enduring a wretched season and are ninth in the 10-team standings with just two wins from eight matches.

Their much-vaunted bowling unit, spearheaded by India paceman Jasprit Bumrah, has struggled mightily with conditions ⁠in the IPL heavily favouring batsmen.

Mumbai posted 243-5 against Sunrisers ​Hyderabad at the Wankhede Stadium on Wednesday, only for the visitors ​to chase it down comfortably in a six-wicket win with eight balls to spare.

Bumrah, widely regarded as the world’s premier fast bowler, went wicketless once ​again while conceding 54 runs in four overs. He remains ​stuck on two wickets in eight matches.

Speaking at the post-match presentation, Pandya said ‌there ⁠was lots of blame to go around for the defeat.

“I won’t put my bowlers under the bus. I think as an overall unit, we have not been able to do what exactly ​Mumbai Indians stands ​for,” he ⁠said.

Mumbai, who have used 22 players this season, more than any other side, just needed a ​slice of luck to turn things around, Pandya added.

“It’s been ⁠that kind of season. When you get a couple of chances, you grab them, that’s when luck and momentum changes,” he said.

“If ⁠you don’t, ​it kind of hurts you, but ​it’s still fine, all the boys tried really well.”

Mumbai next face Chennai Super Kings on Saturday.