IPL Pulse: The streak ends, the wait begins

Good morning

Punjab Kings finally broke the streak. Having lost six on the trot, they managed to register a win after almost a month. They needed it in order to stay alive in the race for that final playoff spot. They currently have that spot in their grasp. They will now wait for a favour from Mumbai Indians.

Here's Cricketlineguruji Pulse, your 2-minute scan of the IPL verse.

Last night in five lines

Josh Inglis kickstarts the game with four boundaries in the opening over en route to his 72.

Ayush Badoni counterattacks in the PP after early wickets.

Abdul Samad provides the finish as LSG make 196.

Prabhsimran and Shreyas take control after LSG's early inroads.

While Prabhsimran makes 69, Iyer slams his maiden ton to give PBKS a crucial win.

Oh, that happened

It was a day of replacements in the IPL. That's not something you would expect with just a week left for the tournament to get over. Ahead of their must-win clash against MI, RR signed Emanjot Chahal as a replacement for the injured Ravi Singh. MI sprung a surprise by bringing in Mahipal Lomror and Ruchit Ahir despite having just one game left in their campaign. While RCB didn't really announce a replacement, they did confirm the absence of Jacob Bethell for the playoffs. The English allrounder has sustained a finger injury and will return to his country.

Pulse Awards

The LSG management wins the party-pooper award for wrecking multiple 'teams' on their way out. While this didn't necessarily happen on the field, LSG destroyed fantasy teams by keeping Mitchell Marsh's departure under wraps. For those who already had him in their XI, it was a rude shock.

The accidental-villain award goes to Suryansh Shedge for almost snatching the above-mentioned party-pooper award from LSG. With Shreyas Iyer inching towards a century, Shedge briefly chose violence over strike rotation by finding the boundary. Thankfully for the skipper, he still managed to get to the three-figure mark.

Another award for the LSG management and this time it's the gentle-reminder award after finally handing Arjun Tendulkar a game in their last match of the season. Now everyone knows that Tendulkar no longer plays for Mumbai Indians.

Josh Inglis bags the last-seen-in-2025 award. The Australian and PBKS have history following their bitter breakup. After his 2025 success, the franchise spent months wondering about his availability for the 2026 campaign, only for him to show up at the worst possible time with a blistering 72. Inglis won, but so did PBKS.

The fighting-for-relevance award goes to Mumbai Indians for naming injury replacements less than 24 hours before their final game of IPL 2026.

Talking point

The long wait finally ended for Shreyas Iyer in his 11th IPL campaign. Having never scored an IPL ton before, he chose the perfect occasion. The chase master was in his elements again despite the loss of early wickets as he steadied the ship before exploding in the end to race to his century. Only Shikhar Dhawan (167) has taken more innings for his maiden ton than Shreyas Iyer (145) now in the IPL.

Chatter

"Prabh, the way he took on the bowlers, it takes two to tango. He seriously showed us what he's capable of." Shreyas Iyer was all praise for his batting partner after the win.

"Today I literally told Ricky that let's not do any team meetings." Again Shreyas Iyer. This time, he just revealed the secret behind the win that ended their losing streak.

PBKS head coach Ricky Ponting reserved rich praise for his skipper by claiming that "there's a bigger, brighter future for him in the Indian T20 team."

"Even if he was 25, I think we'd be talking about him. I think age hasn't come into it." RR's assistant coach Trevor Penney on the boy wonder Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.

"He's broken quite a few limbs in this tournament already." KKR head coach Abhishek Nayar was in awe of Varun Chakaravarthy ahead of the must-win clash against DC.

Stat snack

Prabhsimran Singh became the first uncapped Indian player to score over 500 runs in multiple IPL seasons. PBKS' long-term investment has paid off.

Gossip column

Word is that the IPL batters' association will convene an emergency meeting very shortly. While the initial agenda for their next meeting was supposed to be on the chatter around the Impact Player rule being binned, there has been a massive shift in the last 24 hours following reports of the possibility of teams switching to a pink-ball in a conventional Test match. Yes, you got that right. They definitely don't want the white ball turning pink in an IPL game.

Tonight's watchlist

It's the final double header of IPL 2026. Mumbai Indians will be signing off following their afternoon fixture over Rajasthan Royals. If the Royals manage to win, the final league fixture between Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Capitals will turn into a meaningless clash. If RR don't win, then the different possible scenarios will pop up again.

Reckless prediction

Ricky Ponting to throw his cap away in frustration inside his hotel room at around 7:30 in the evening. Remember Rahul Dravid? 2014?