Shreyas Iyer (BCCI Photo) NEW DELHI: The tension in Punjab Kings football was clearly visible as captain Shreyas Iyer was seen in pain holding his wrist during their IPL 2026 clash against Gujarat Titans. A sharp drive from Connolly hit Iyer on the non-striker’s wrist and forced him to seek medical attention.Iyer looked considerably unsettled as a physio attended to him on the field and applied ice to the injured area.But there was relief all around when Iyer appeared at the post-match presentation with a smile.“All I can say is it’s nice. It’s the same as before. I don’t want to gossip. I just want to stay positive and hopefully everything goes well,” he said during the postgame presentation when asked about the injury.Debutant Cooper Connolly scored his maiden half-century as Punjab Kings chased down a target of 163 in 19.1 overs to claim three wickets at the PCA’s New International Cricket Stadium in New Chandigarh on Tuesday.
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KKR Depart from Mumbai after losing to Mumbai Indians“Honestly, I was concentrating on my hand inside, I iced it and then all of a sudden we lost two wickets against each other. These things happen in the IPL and you have to stay calm and composed in those situations. So the message was pretty simple. Just finish the game and Cooper was there. He was almost set. And as a player he has a great awareness of playing in Australia. I hope he continues in the same form,” Shreyas said, praising Cooper’s knock.“Some of the shots he bowled were unbelievable to watch. It was unbelievable. Six off the back leg of Rashid, one of the best bowlers in the IPL, to hit him so clearly and accurately, it was just phenomenal,” Connolly added of the performance.After Punjab Kings opted to field first, Vijaykumar Vyshak (3/34), Yuzvendra Chahal (2/28) and Marco Jansen (1/20) combined effectively to restrict Gujarat Titans to 162/6.Punjab Kings chased down the target in 19.1 overs to start their IPL 2026 campaign on a winning note.
