Perennial under-achievers, Punjab Kings, stored to a three-point lead at the top of the IPL log in another week of dominant victories. Coach Ricky Ponting caused some raised eyebrows with penchant for acquiring the services of a rash of fellow Australians but they have all risen to the task, none more than largely unheralded Cooper Connolly who smashed 87 from 46 balls in the final match of the week against Lucknow Super Giants. But It’s dismal at the other end of the log for former champions Kolkata Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians who still have just a solitary victory each.
Neil Manthorp reviews: IPL WEEK THREE
𝘼𝙡𝙡'𝙨 𝙬𝙚𝙡𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙬𝙚𝙡𝙡 😃
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 19, 2026
Only smiles on the faces of skipper Shreyas Iyer, coach Ricky Ponting and.. Shashank Singh! #TATAIPL | #KhelBindaas | #PBKSvLSG | @PunjabKingsIPL pic.twitter.com/SQU5z3zNdy
MATCH OF THE WEEK: Royal Challengers Bengaluru looked 15 runs short of a good score with 175-8 vs Delhi Capitals and when DC were reduced to 18-3 and 87-4 at the halfway stage, it was game on. Tristan Stubbs ‘hung in’ struggling to score at a run-a-ball with David Miller bristling. 37 were required from the final three overs and 15 from the last – then 13 from the final four balls. Miller blasted Romario Shepherd for two consecutive sixes and a four to win it with a ball to spare.
BATTER: Eye-catching strike rates make headlines but more important than high speed is the right speed. Gujarat Titans reply to KKR’s 180 was steered superbly by Shubman Gill’s 86 from 50 balls as he parked the five-wicket victory with expert precision with two balls to spare. Prabhsimran Singh …
🚨 Gujarat Titans performance when Shubman Gill gets out in the powerplay since 2023:
— Ahmed Says (@AhmedGT_) April 20, 2026
2 times - 2023 (1Win and 1 loss)
5 times - 2024 (1Win and 4 loss)
3 times - 2025 (0Win and 4 loss)
- Gill is the MVP of Gujarat Titans, the biggest match winner! 🥶🔥pic.twitter.com/kyi78voNUM
BOWLER: Varun Chakravarthy’s recent loss of form had tongues wagging about the beginning of the end – but great leg-spinners don’t just fade away. Figures of 4-0-14-3 was the most salient ingredient in KKR’s first win of the tournament against Rajasthan. Another great veteran, Ravindra Jadeja, returned 3-0-8-2 for Rajasthan in the same match. Bewildering that he didn’t bowl a fourth over.
🗣️ VARUN CHAKRAVARTHY ON TEAM EMOTIONS 💜🏏
— Akaran.A (@Akaran_1) April 20, 2026
“I could see many tears in the dressing room after our first win this season. We didn’t see that many tears even when we won the trophy in 2024.” 🥹🔥#VarunChakravarthy #KKR #IPL2026 #Cricket 💜🏏 pic.twitter.com/ERjQwAKw6H
OUCH: Deepak Chahar – 2.3-0-45-0 for MI against Punjab with a total of 195 to defend. That hurts. Praful Hinge was outstanding for Sunrisers in the first game of the week with his tricky slower balls earning him 4-34 as Rajasthan collapsed to 9-5 but five day later his figures were 3-0-54-0 against CSK. But…when LSG gave Aiden Markram an exploratory over against a rampant Punjab in te final match of the week they could have done with a little less than five sixes and 32 runs coming from it.
PERFORMANCE: Abhishek Sharma’s 59 from 22 balls put Sunrisers on their way against CSK and captain Ishan Kishan’s 91 from 44 did the same against Rajasthan but both paled in comparison to Punjab opener Priyansh Arya’s gob-smacking 93 from 37 balls as LSG were carved up in a total of 254-7. Four fours and nine sixes. The production line of explosive Indian openers is relentless. LSG almost didn’t bother chasing, cruising to 200-5 in reply.
BREATHTAKING. BRUTAL. BRILLIANT. 🌪️
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 19, 2026
Priyansh Arya is the Player of the Match for his phenomenal 93 (37)! 🫡
Relive his knock 👉 https://t.co/TQpWfDHNYB#TATAIPL | #KhelBindaas | #PBKSvLSG | @PunjabKingsIPL pic.twitter.com/kTQWfK2yRD
INDIAN PLAYER: Rinku Singh. It’s been three years since he burst onto the scene with five sixes in the final over to win a match for KKR against Gujarat and the nasty taunts have been increasing in the absence of match-winning performances in the interim. But his 53* from 34 balls, including clutch boundaries in the final over, guided KKR to their first win. Too little, too late for the Franchise, probably, but always good to see a quality player slay their nay-sayers.
OVERSEAS PLAYER: Being the most expensive signing in IPL history comes with its pressures and KKR’s Cameron Green wasn’t having an easy time of it. A first ball duck and 2-0-30-0 in Tuesday’s 32-run against CSK saw the pressure build further. He top scored with 79 from 55 balls in a losing total of 180 against Gujarat Titans but a quickfire 27 from 13 helped towards their belated first victory on Sunday against the Royals.
SOUTH AFRICAN: Marco Jansen enjoyed another week of solid performances without grabbing any headlines. He is a massive part of Punjab’s domination of the first part of the season. But it was also good to see Kagiso Rabada claim 3-29 for Gujarat to help dismiss KKR for 180 – his new ball partnership with Mohammad Siraj (2-23) is high risk, high reward. The South African of the week, however, is clearly David Miller.
BEST LOSER: Quinton de Kock had to wait two weeks for his first match for MI but capitalised with a fine, unbeaten 112 from 60 balls against Punjab who chased down 195 with 21 balls to spare.
What a player, what a knock, and what a way to start the season! 💯
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 16, 2026
Quinton de Kock, take a bow for a truly special Wankhede hundred! 👏
Updates ▶️ https://t.co/Fn2dxJ4zYR#TATAIPL | #KhelBindaas | #MIvPBKS | @mipaltan pic.twitter.com/jEhH1ofb1z
TALKING POINT: Heinrich Klaasen said: “I don’t care about strike rate. I’ve put my team in good positions.” Fair enough. He is the leading run scorer with 283 at an average of 47. And a strike rate of 144. Maybe his role has changed, or he has changed it. His 40 from 26 balls and 59 from 39 against RR and CSK were very good. Strike rate of 150, but not the devastating 250 on which his reputation and R40 million fee was built. He knows best. Results will confirm.
Pure consistency out in the middle 🏏
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 19, 2026
Heinrich Klaasen ends the third week with the Orange Cap on his head 👏
Who will be leading the race this time next week? ⏳#TATAIPL | #KhelBindaas pic.twitter.com/4Klq9DnxrQ
LOOK OUT FOR: When will LSG drop Nicholas Pooran? The devastating Trinidadian left-hander was retained on a fee of well over $2 million and has so far contributed 51 runs in six innings. Without ever remotely looking like scoring. Form is temporary, class is permanent. But…