PBKS Bowl First vs SRH in IPL 2026 Clash; Debut for Praful Hinge

Punjab Kings captain Shreyas Iyer won the toss and elected to bowl first against Sunrisers Hyderabad in their IPL 2026 encounter. SRH skipper Ishan Kishan acknowledged they would have preferred to bowl but backed his young side to execute their plans. The match sees SRH handing an IPL debut to Praful Hinge, who replaces Jaydev Unadkat, while Salil Arora comes in for Liam Livingstone. For PBKS, Priyansh Arya is in the playing eleven with Nehal Wadhera named as an Impact Substitute.

Key Points: IPL 2026: Punjab Kings Bowl First vs Sunrisers Hyderabad

  • PBKS wins toss and bowls first
  • Praful Hinge makes IPL debut for SRH
  • Salil Arora replaces Liam Livingstone
  • Priyansh Arya in PBKS XI
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IPL 2026: Punjab Kings wins toss, opts to bowl first against Sunrisers Hyderabad

PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer opts to bowl first against SRH in Match 17. Get toss updates, playing XIs, and debut news.

"We're going to bowl first. It's a day game, and obviously want to get a knack of how the wicket is going to play. - Shreyas Iyer"

Chandigarh, April 11

Punjab Kings have asked Sunrisers Hyderabad to bat first in match 17 of the Indian Premier League 2026 at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in New Chandigarh on Saturday.

Praful Hinge is making his IPL debut. He is replacing Jaydev Unadkat in the Sunrisers Hyderabad side. Salil Arora replaced Liam Livingstone as the SRH made a couple of changes from the last game.

Shreyas Iyer, PBKS captain, informed that Priyansh Arya is in the playing XI and Nehal Wadhera may come as an Impact Substitute later in the match.

Speaking during the toss, PBKS captain Iyer said, "We're going to bowl first. It's a day game, and obviously want to get a knack of how the wicket is going to play and a fair idea. But other than that, that's what we've been doing in the last couple of games. We've been thriving on that. Just back each other, back all the youngsters in the team. The more you tell them, the more confusing it gets for them. So, it's better that they live in their own nature and express themselves. No, we're going with the same team. Actually, bowling first, Priyansh comes in for Nehal."

SRH skipper Ishan Kishan said, "We would have loved to bowl first. But yeah, I think wicket looks pretty hard to me. And it's about playing good cricket in the first innings. (On captaining) Obviously, it's a big disadvantage for any team. Pat is a tremendous bowler. He gets on with an experience of his. But still, I feel we've got a young side, young bowlers today in the team. Hopefully, we'll just try and execute the plans, which is the most important thing in T20 cricket. Yeah, there are two changes. Salil comes in in place of Livingstone and Praful Hinge; it's his debut game in place of Jaydev Unadkat."

Punjab Kings (Playing XI): Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh(w), Cooper Connolly, Shreyas Iyer(c), Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Xavier Bartlett, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal

Sunrisers Hyderabad (Playing XI): Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan(w/c), Heinrich Klaasen, Salil Arora, Aniket Verma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Harsh Dubey, Shivang Kumar, Harshal Patel, Eshan Malinga

Sunrisers Hyderabad Impact subs: Jaydev Unadkat, Liam Livingstone, Shivam Mavi, Praful Hinge, Kamindu Mendis

Punjab Kings Impact subs: Nehal Wadhera, Vishnu Vinod, Suryansh Shedge, Yash Thakur, Harpreet Brar.

- ANI

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Reader Comments

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Sarah B
Excited to see Priyansh Arya get a game! He was brilliant in the domestic season. But dropping Nehal Wadhera seems a bit harsh, he was finding form. Hope the Impact Sub strategy works for Punjab.
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Vikram M
SRH missing Pat Cummins is a massive blow, no doubt. Ishan Kishan has a point. But their batting looks solid with Head and Abhishek at the top. All the best to debutant Praful Hinge! Make it count, young man.
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Rohit P
Iyer's captaincy talk makes sense. Let the youngsters play their natural game without overloading them with instructions. That's how you build confidence. But PBKS's middle order still looks a bit shaky to me, hope Stoinis fires today.
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Kavya N
As a Hyderabad fan, a bit worried about the bowling without Cummins. Harshal Patel and Eshan Malinga will have to lead the attack. Bat first, put up a big total, and put pressure on Punjab. Orange Army! 🧡
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Michael C
Interesting to see Cooper Connolly and Marco Jansen in the same Punjab side. Two great all-rounders. The match might be decided in the middle overs between Klaasen and Yuzvendra Chahal. Should be a cracker!
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