Shreyas Iyer’s team finds itself teetering on the edge, far from its earlier dominance. Weeks passed with Punjab leaning hard into an aggressive rhythm, banking purely on explosive batters. That approach delivered sharp results at first, yet the very force that lifted them now lies broken. What felt inevitable months ago has quietly unraveled, leaving gaps no one saw coming.

PBKS found momentum early, claiming six victories in seven matches, one match lost to rain. Praise flowed freely for Iyer, nicknamed ‘Sarpanch’, admired widely for his calm lead.

Then came Karan Aujla’s ‘Hukam’, a song that stuck around online, echoing loud after strong showings, particularly the triumph over Mumbai Indians at the start of play.

Dharamsala exposes Punjab Kings’ biggest flaws

Now it’s the players – Arshdeep Singh, Harpreet Brar, who wore smiles like medals. Even Ricky Ponting, usually so still on the sidelines, moved like someone feeling a rhythm. A lyric from their chant flies close to saying they’d rattle the city clear down to Bombay. Yet Thursday’s loss scraped all that shine away. What stood tall now leans into doubt.

Punjab sit on a losing streak that won’t break, five games slipping through their fingers. Another clash with the Kolkata Knight Riders vanished into rain and delays. Chances of making the playoffs, they’re fraying at the edges. The calendar keeps moving – no pauses, no second chances.

Trouble struck at Dharamsala. Every time Punjab stepped onto that ground this year, their defense cracked under pressure. Wins slipped away, games they should’ve claimed went sideways. Just days ago, Delhi found 211 manageable despite the heat. Then Thursday arrived, and Mumbai reached 201 like it was routine.

In Dharamsala, things got tough for Punjab’s batters. Hills brought a livelier surface compared to the earlier flat ones seen this year. Ball zipped around more here – sharper bounce, help off the pitch, seams talking all day. Is that the usual plan of charging hard right away. It just fell apart under these skies.

Punjab once chased 265 against Delhi; maybe that win pumped up their belief in wild aggression. Luck showed up, too; Karun Nair missed two catches off Iyer’s blade under lights. After that high, they’ve stumbled, unable to grab rhythm again.

Fresh off good form, their top batters haven’t settled well in Dharamsala. Instead of flowing innings, Prabhsimran Singh, Cooper Connolly, and Iyer scraped through for fifties without rhythm. Momentum slowed down fast, with scoring rates dropping sharply. Without smooth transitions between overs, Punjab’s batting looks disconnected compared to earlier ease.

Medium-pace bowlers caused trouble when it mattered most. Delhi saw them struggle against Madhav Tiwari, then Mumbai watched Shardul Thakur reshape everything through one sharp burst. Neither had been flagged as dangerous ahead of those games.

Still, both changed how things unfolded.

Punjab’s road gets steeper from here. Back in Dharamsala by Sunday, they meet Royal Challengers Bengaluru, a team riding high, fueled by Virat Kohli’s sharp recent edge.

Then comes a trip to take on Lucknow Super Giants in the last league match, set for May 23. Missing out on the playoffs could come down to waiting till the final round. What used to power Punjab’s success, their batting lineup, is suddenly what might drag them under.