- April 27, 2025
Let’s be honest – following Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the IPL is somewhat akin to a blindfolded rollercoaster ride – just when you feel they are soaring, down you suddenly drop. Now, as we head towards the business end of the season, one thing is clear: the next big question for PBKS is whether they can retain their control and manage to slip into the playoffs of the IPL? A complicated mix of home and away opportunities remains, and we’re certainly not talking about an easy run-in. So, let’s look into the actual degree of difficulty.
Home Advantage? More Like Home Adventure
PBKS will play three “home” games still to come, although they won’t be all at their “home ground.” Two of them are in Dharamsala, which has not been a house of horrors for them. But Dharamsala is no ordinary ground: it’s a batting paradise with its bounce and short boundaries. That’s all good news if you’re looking to chase down 220 runs. Not so good if your fifth bowler is still an issue.
Their initial major hurdle is Delhi Capitals at home, and although Delhi has been a mixed bag this season, they have the firepower to spoil anyone’s party. Following that, it’s the Mumbai Indians, who know all about timing their push for the playoffs just right. In the end, PBKS could find itself sweating if it loses to one or both.
Lucknow Super Giants and Rajasthan Royals away are also no walk in the park, given the middle order at Lucknow – loaded with players like Pooran and Stoinis – love chases, and Rajasthan at Jaipur is always a tough customer. Home advantage sounds cool, but for Punjab, it is home advantage – unpredictable and unpredictable.
The Fifth Bowler Conundrum
One of the major headaches for PBKS right now? Their fifth bowler. Let’s be honest — you can’t defend totals, and you can’t contain oppositions, if you are searching for four good overs in every single match.
Stoinis and their last game, plus Maxwell, have not been fruitful as a bowling option with the ball of late. Asking Maxi to bowl in places like Dharamshala, where the ball tends to seem like it’s travelling even quicker than memes go viral after an IPL upset, seems like a toss of the coin at best. Marco Jansen could have been a decent option on bouncy surfaces, but their team balance is still an issue.
PBKS’s top four bowlers have been respectable, but the gap without that fifth bowler is concerning. In matches where there are high totals involved, a passage of over with a poor return can swing a match on its head, and without that fifth quality option, the PBKS are effectively still walking a razor’s edge without a safety net.
Points on the Board, But Pressure on the Mind
Here is the good news — PBKS has done enough in the early going to be in contention. They currently have 11 points, and with a couple of wins, they can hit the magic number (likely 15-17 points) to make the playoffs.
The history books also offer hope. So, if we assume PBKS are going to lose one match, they still have a chance. But momentum – and a big ‘But’ – is everything at this time of year. If they lose a couple of early matches, the pressure will start to build, the confidence will fade, and you risk the same old ‘Punjab fading at the death’ story.
The positive outcome is that PBKS has some match-winning talent. The negative is that they will need at least 3 clinical match performances from here on out in order to avoid the heartbreak. Also, it isn’t so much about talent as it is about temperament in the pressure-cooker situations of IPL.
Will this be the year that they finally break this playoff curse? Or will it be just another heartbreak?
Only time and a couple of nail-biting matches will tell. So hang around, and keep the tissues on standby, just in case.
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