- By Namrata Vijay
- Sun, 19 Apr 2026 11:02 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
PBKS VS LSG IPL 2026: The Punjab Kings batter Priyansh Arya and Cooper Conolly fell short of well-deserved centuries after they stitched a record-breaking partnership of 182 runs for the second wicket, snatching the match away from the Lucknow-based franchise during their IPL 2026 match on Sunday. The host suffered a huge blow after Mohammed Shami dismissed opener Prabsimran Singh for a golden duck during his first over.
At one point, it looked like the Lucknow-based franchise might dominate on a pitch that provided some movement. They didn't lose hope for a long time. Arya and Conolly helped the team to bounce back and took the match away from the Rishabh Pant-led side.
Both Priyansh Arya and Cooper Conolly took the scorecard to 63/1 after the power play ended. They piled the pressure on the opponent by scoring 28 runs during the next two overs. Ayush Badoni came into the bowling attack, but Conolly smashed a four and a six during his first two balls. Avesh Khan was also taken to the cleaners, as the PBKS batters scored freely.
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Arya's knock displayed control as he batted aggressively. During Manimaran's Sidharth, over where the fielders were standing on the leg side, he had smashed the ball towards the paddle for a boundary, which showed his level of awareness. He had smashed his second fifty of this season off 19 balls and had set the foundation of his record-breaking knock.
Connolly took the fast bowlers to the cleaners. He rotated strike and punished the loose balls. He brought up his half-century off 35 balls and helped the host score 129 runs in 11 overs. Till then, the Rishabh Pant-led side was behind in this match. It was brilliant strokeplay. The host had smashed 16 sixes during the first 13 overs, of which Arya hit nine, and the partnership had gone up to 176 runs.
The hosts were under some pressure during the middle overs. During 11 to 13 overs, about six sixes were smashed as Aiden Markram had conceded 32 runs during an over. Despite making some changes in the bowling lineup, the situation remained the same. Not once did the LSG bowlers restrict these batters.
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Arya's knock was full of fifty. He had scored 93 runs off 36 balls and had smashed four fours and nine sixes, and batted with complete freedom against both fast bowlers and spinners. He forced the visitors to make field changes as the bowlers looked clueless.
Conolly's brilliant knock of 87 runs off 45 balls made sure that the run flow didn't stop from the other end. He had smashed eight fours and seven sixes as he too scored a brilliant knock, instead of just playing second fiddle. They had stitched a partnership of 50 runs off 31 balls.
LSG bowlers did show glimpses of bouncing back for a while as Prince Yadav bowled his line and length brilliantly during the first over. And when Arya had hit lots of sixes during Mohsin Khan's over, the game turned in the host's favor.
The Rishabh Pant-led side did bounce back during the 14th over. Conolly got out after scoring 87 runs, and Arya too was dismissed after scoring 93 runs, and both of them fell short of their well-deserved centuries. Shreyas Iyer too fell cheaply as the host went from 179/1 to 193/4 during the 16th over.