Punjab Kings redeemed themselves in IPL 2025, when they got together on the auction table, and forged a team, that could win, under the leadership of Shreyas Iyer. The result — PBKS went on to make their first playoffs appearance in over a decade. Yes, there were a few shortcomings in hindsight, but there was progress for sure.
And to continue just that, PBKS made some sound choices at the IPL 2026 retentions. Coming into the IPL 2026 auctions, they have one of the lowest purses of 11.50 Cr + 5 Cr. What also needs to be commended is, they got rid of the under-performing Glenn Maxwell.
Players PBKS should target at IPL 2026 auction
So, what players do PBKS really need when they come into the IPL 2026 auction? Perhaps, only a replacement for Josh Inglis, their explosive keeper-batter option, who did decently well for them. Also, on radar could be a spin-bowling all-rounder, a pace-bowling all-rounder replacement for Aaron Hardie, and Indian pacer for Kuldeep Sen, and a leg-spinner for Praveen Dube.
| Player | Type |
|---|---|
| Wanindu Hasaranga/Liam Livingstone/Deepak Hooda/Rachin Ravindra | Spin-bowling all-rounder |
| Devon Conway/Quinton de Kock/ Jamie Smith | Indian/Foreign wicket-keeper |
| Wiaan Mulder/Vjay Shankar/Andre Russell/Dasun Shanaka | Pace-bowling all-rounder |
| Rajvardhan Hargargekar/Akash Deep/Mohammed Shami | Indian fast bowler |
| Ravi Bishnoi/Rahul Chahar | Indian spinner |
Punjab Kings Squad Before IPL 2026 Auction
Shreyas Iyer (c), Nehal Wadhera, Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh, Shashank Singh, Pyla Avinash, Harnoor Pannu, Musheer Khan, Vishnu Vinod, Marcus Stoinis, Azmatullah Omarzai, Suryansh Shedge, Mitchell Owen, Arshdeep Singh, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Yash Thakur, Xavier Bartlett, Lockie Ferguson, Yuzvendra Chahal, Harpreet Brar.
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