Prabhsimran, Arshdeep power Punjab to victory over LSG

Dharamsala: Rishabh Pant let go of both his bat and the match as Punjab Kings tightened their grip on a playoff spot and pushed Lucknow Super Giants closer to elimination with a 37-run win in Dharamsala on Sunday.

Punjab’s batting charge was led by Prabhsimran Singh, who hammered a 48-ball 91 to set up a formidable 236/5. The momentum was then sealed by Arshdeep Singh’s fiery Powerplay spell (3/16), which dismantled LSG’s top order in no time.

Arshdeep accounted for the wickets of Mitchell Marsh (0), Aiden Markram (13), and the dangerous Nicholas Pooran (6), leaving LSG with little chance of a successful chase. While Ayush Badoni battled hard with a valiant 74 off 40 balls, it wasn’t enough as LSG finished on 199/7 in 20 overs.

With just three matches left, even a full 16-point finish may not guarantee LSG a playoff berth due to their net run rate. Meanwhile, Punjab now sit second on the table with 15 points from 11 matches, needing just one more win to potentially secure a top-four spot.

However, Rishabh Pant’s underwhelming form continues to concern fans and critics alike. The ₹27-crore captain has managed just 128 runs from 11 innings this season, striking below 100 (99.22). On Sunday, he struggled to 18 from 17 balls before attempting a wild slog off Azmatullah Omarzai. The bat flew towards square leg while the ball headed to deep point — a symbol of Pant’s disjointed campaign.

His performance epitomised LSG’s overall missteps, starting from the auction table, where they relied heavily on a not fully-fit Mayank Yadav to lead a sub-par bowling line-up. Post rehabilitation under Nitin Patel at the National Cricket Academy, Mayank has reportedly lost 10–15 kmph in pace, which showed as he leaked 60 runs in four overs, including six sixes.

Prabhsimran, meanwhile, played an electrifying innings that featured six fours and seven towering sixes. He came agonisingly close to his second IPL ton but fell for 91 while attempting a switch hit off Digvesh Rathi.

Shashank Singh chipped in with a blistering 33 off 15 balls towards the end to lift Punjab’s total beyond LSG’s reach. PBKS smashed 16 sixes in total, with pacers conceding 13 of them.

Initially, Prabhsimran took the back seat as Jos Inglis went on the offensive, hitting Mayank Yadav for three consecutive sixes. Inglis's departure brought Shreyas Iyer to the crease, and together with Prabhsimran, they stitched a 78-run stand in just 7.5 overs. Iyer contributed 45 off 25 balls before falling to Rathi, who emerged as the most effective bowler for LSG on the night.

Despite that breakthrough, LSG’s fielding added to their woes — none more so than Avesh Khan’s forgettable performance. His poor effort in the field, combined with his wayward bowling that cost 57 runs in four overs, made him a liability on the field. “He would probably go down as the worst fielder in the 18-year history of IPL,” the report noted bluntly.

Prabhsimran didn’t hold back and targeted Khan relentlessly, smashing back-to-back sixes over mid-wicket in a moment that summed up Punjab’s dominance and LSG’s disarray.