PBKS Captain Shreyas Iyer NEW CHANDIgarH: Sometime in the IPL 2026 season, the middle overs stopped mattering. Death overs still produce their theatre, but an increasing number of games this season have been decided in the first six overs. The two power plays therefore became the most consistent part of the match.Punjab Kings assistant coach Brad Haddin watched the shift from close quarters. “What we’re seeing is a trend over the course of the tournament and how impressive most of the top teams have been in the first six games,” he said. “Now it’s so hard to stop teams playing their first six innings. That’s why the shutout becomes decisive and a lot of games are decided in two shutouts in two innings.”“Obviously you’ve got a substitute to come in, so you can juggle whether it’s an extra batsman, which allows your top order to be tougher than in the past,” Haddin said.Moreover, the presence of this dough changed the intention. Risk is no longer an option or a gamble, it is an instruction. It created a constant search for disruption for pitchers and coaches. “From a coach’s perspective, you have to constantly try to find ways to slow down the scoring,” Haddin said. “It can be about picking wickets. It can be about getting the batsman to hit you in the area you want him to hit.”Rajasthan Royals seamer Sandeep Sharma echoed the sentiment. “Power-overs are becoming so crucial that matches are often decided in the opening stages of both innings,” he said.What makes this shift particularly notable is the consistency with which teams are executing it. This is no longer about one or two sides redefining the pace; it’s a tournament-wide phenomenon. “The first six overs have turned into the deciding phase of this tournament, with teams consistently excelling and bowlers finding it difficult to respond,” Sharma added.
