Are dropped catches costing PBKS? Shreyas Iyer's honest admission after SRH loss costs No. 1 spot in IPL 2026
Soham Mukherjee | May 7, 2026 1:20 PM CST
Punjab Kings' skipper Shreyas Iyer made an honest admission that their poor fielding must be improved after the loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad cost them the No. 1 spot in IPL 2026.
It was another frustrating outing on the field at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, as PBKS dropped three more catches and missed a stumping, adding to an already damning record.
Cooper Connolly was the first to put one down, grassing a relatively straightforward chance off Ishan Kishan at backward square leg. Shashank Singh, who has been a frequent offender this season, then failed to hold onto a Heinrich Klaasen chance at deep backward square leg, a drop that resulted in a boundary.
Lockie Ferguson joined the list in the 11th over when he fumbled another chance off Yuzvendra Chahal's bowling. In that same over, wicketkeeper Prabhsimran Singh also failed to execute a stumping, as SRH powered their way to 235 for 4.
"We dropped too many catches," Iyer said. "I think it was a bit too much because we dropped many catches at the start, and we could have easily reduced their score by 30-40 runs.
"I guess because the wicket kept getting slower and the cutters were holding up a bit. So, we weren't comprehensive enough in the field, in bowling, or in batting. So, I think they played comprehensive cricket, and they showed us how to win the match."
Yuzvendra Chahal's misfortunes continue against SRH
Nobody has suffered more from Punjab's fielding failures than Chahal. He finished with figures of 1 for 32 but was left shaking his head as a dropped catch and a missed stumping came off consecutive deliveries in a single over.
Across the entire season, Chahal has generated 16 catching chances and seen eight of them put down by his teammates, a catching efficiency of just 50 percent off his bowling.
"Bowled beautifully today without luck," Iyer said. "Certainly, the way he bowled, he was fearless, and his attitude was fantastic against left-handers. I asked him to be attacking, especially when the new batsmen were in, because they were on the charge right from ball one.
"And it was crucial to get wickets at that point of time. Unfortunately, we weren't able to take catches. I think that was the biggest setback for us in today's game."
How many catches have the Punjab Kings dropped in IPL 2026?
Across 10 matches this season, Punjab have put down 16 catches, a figure they share with Chennai Super Kings for the most in the competition. But their catching efficiency of 71.43 percent is the worst among all sides in IPL 2026.
Head coach Ricky Ponting, speaking to broadcasters during the first innings, tried to treat the situation with a degree of dark humour, joking that the problem had spread through the squad like a virus.
"It's like a virus. We've put a lot of catches down so far this season," he said.
It was another frustrating outing on the field at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, as PBKS dropped three more catches and missed a stumping, adding to an already damning record.
Cooper Connolly was the first to put one down, grassing a relatively straightforward chance off Ishan Kishan at backward square leg. Shashank Singh, who has been a frequent offender this season, then failed to hold onto a Heinrich Klaasen chance at deep backward square leg, a drop that resulted in a boundary.
Lockie Ferguson joined the list in the 11th over when he fumbled another chance off Yuzvendra Chahal's bowling. In that same over, wicketkeeper Prabhsimran Singh also failed to execute a stumping, as SRH powered their way to 235 for 4.
"We dropped too many catches," Iyer said. "I think it was a bit too much because we dropped many catches at the start, and we could have easily reduced their score by 30-40 runs.
"I guess because the wicket kept getting slower and the cutters were holding up a bit. So, we weren't comprehensive enough in the field, in bowling, or in batting. So, I think they played comprehensive cricket, and they showed us how to win the match."
Yuzvendra Chahal's misfortunes continue against SRH
Nobody has suffered more from Punjab's fielding failures than Chahal. He finished with figures of 1 for 32 but was left shaking his head as a dropped catch and a missed stumping came off consecutive deliveries in a single over.
Across the entire season, Chahal has generated 16 catching chances and seen eight of them put down by his teammates, a catching efficiency of just 50 percent off his bowling.
"Bowled beautifully today without luck," Iyer said. "Certainly, the way he bowled, he was fearless, and his attitude was fantastic against left-handers. I asked him to be attacking, especially when the new batsmen were in, because they were on the charge right from ball one.
"And it was crucial to get wickets at that point of time. Unfortunately, we weren't able to take catches. I think that was the biggest setback for us in today's game."
How many catches have the Punjab Kings dropped in IPL 2026?
Across 10 matches this season, Punjab have put down 16 catches, a figure they share with Chennai Super Kings for the most in the competition. But their catching efficiency of 71.43 percent is the worst among all sides in IPL 2026.
Head coach Ricky Ponting, speaking to broadcasters during the first innings, tried to treat the situation with a degree of dark humour, joking that the problem had spread through the squad like a virus.
"It's like a virus. We've put a lot of catches down so far this season," he said.
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