New Delhi, April 20
Punjab Kings defeated Lucknow Super Giants by 54 runs in match 29 of the Indian Premier League 2026 to stay unbeaten this edition. The runners-up of the last season batted first and made 254 runs, courtesy of Priyansh Arya and Cooper Connolly's half-centuries.
The 22-year-old Connolly formed a 182-run partnership with Arya in which he contributed 87 runs in just 46 balls. He hit eight fours and seven sixes in his powerful knock.
Speaking about the pitch during the post-match press conference on Sunday, Connolly said, "The wicket was pretty nice. Priyansh and Prabhsimran sort of go about their business the way they do, and Priyansh has done it over the last couple of years and been successful at it. I was at the other end just in awe a little bit there, because I couldn't get on strike, just enjoyed watching him bat."
"I think the game doesn't change too much when you're batting first. We're just trying to play good cricket shots, put the pressure on the bowling attack, and take advantage of the loose balls, and I think we did that tonight," he added.
PBKS are at the top of the table, unbeaten, with five wins and a no result, giving them 11 points. LSG is at the eighth spot in the points table with two wins and four losses. PBKS raced to 254/7, with knocks from Priyansh (93 in 37 balls, with four boundaries and nine sixes) and Connolly taking them to such a big score.
LSG had their moments, with a 61-run opening stand between Ayush Badoni (35 in 21 balls, with five fours and a six) and Mitchell Marsh (40 in 28 balls, with three fours and two sixes) and a counter-attack from Rishabh Pant (43 in 23 balls, with a four and four sixes), but it was not enough. With this win over LSG, PBKS became the first-ever team to stay unbeaten for the first six matches in an IPL campaign.
PBKS will clash with Delhi Capitals in their next IPL game on Saturday in New Delhi. Speaking about being unbeaten in this edition, PBKS all-rounder Connolly said, "We'll take each game as it comes, to be honest. We won't look too far ahead. And that's something Australia has sort of been big on, concentrating on what's in front of us at the moment and just trying to concentrate on what we can control. We'll keep doing what we've been doing over the last sort of three to four weeks. And we'll keep ticking along. We'll keep trying to get better every session. That's all we can ask the group, just trying to get better every day. And I think that's something we've been really good at so far. So looking forward to it."
- ANI
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