Summary of this article
Punjab Kings host Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2026 Match 40 in New Chandigarh on Tuesday
Shashank Singh was left out of the XI against RR, replaced by 23-year-old Suryansh Shedge
PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer called it a “forced change”
Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 leaders Punjab Kings (PBKS) will look to maintain their winning streak when they host Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in New Chandigarh on Tuesday, April 28, 2026.
PBKS are flying high in this season’s IPL, remaining unbeaten so far and are favourites for a play-off place at the midway point of the season. One of the reasons for their runner-up finish last season was the form of power hitter Shashank Singh, who scored 350 runs in 17 matches at an average of 50.
However, Shashank’s form has dipped slightly this season, with the middle-order batter managing just 70 runs in seven matches. Although he has maintained a high strike rate of 195, he has managed a high score of just 19. On top of that, he has been poor in the field, dropping four catches in the match against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG).
Unsurprisingly, he was dropped from the PBKS starting XI for the match against RR, with 23-year-old Suryansh Shedge making his first appearance of the season. However, it was not clear if Shashank had been dropped due to poor form or an unnamed injury, as captain Shreyas Iyer called it “a forced change”.
There was one more change for PBKS, with New Zealand pacer Lockie Ferguson replacing Xavier Bartlett. This is Ferguson’s first appearance in IPL 2026. Bartlett was named among the impact substitutes.
PBKS vs RR, IPL 2026: Playing XIs
Punjab Kings: Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Priyansh Arya, Shreyas Iyer (c), Cooper Connolly, Suryansh Shedge, Nehal Wadhera, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Lockie Ferguson, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.
Rajasthan Royals: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Riyan Parag (c), Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Dasun Shanaka, Jofra Archer, Nandre Burger, Brijesh Sharma, Yash Raj Punja.
