Punjab Kings new recruit Cooper Connolly, who was given the role of batting at no. 3 for PBKS, has had an outstanding IPL debut and is keeping his team in the hunt in Match 4 of IPL 2026 at Mullanpur, New Chandigarh, against the Gujarat Titans.
Chasing 163, Punjab Kings are at 108/2 in 11.4 overs and require 55 off 50 balls. The debutant Connolly has looked in good touch, remaining not out at 45 off 28 balls, with the help of two boundaries and four sixes. Skipper Shreyas Iyer has provided valuable support to Connolly with 18 off just 10 balls.
Earlier in the innings, Punjab Kings lost Priyansh Arya for just 7. Wicketkeeper Prabhsimran Singh had played a quickfire innings of 37 off 24 balls before getting out to Rashid Khan. Connolly and Prabhsimran shared a partnership worth 76 to put PBKS back into the game.
Connolly Smashes Rashid Khan for Huge Six
A special moment was when Cooper Connolly decided to go big against the formidable Rashid Khan. In the 7th over, when Rashid bowled a short delivery, the PBKS batter Connolly, decided to take him on. The left-hander rocked back and then absolutely smashed the ball over wide long-on for a 103m massive six-an outstanding shot that lit up the match.
Warch the video here:
Earlier, Gujarat Titans posted 162/6 in 20 overs. Shubman Gill top-scored with 39 off 27 deliveries, followed by Jos Buttler with 38 off 33 deliveries. Glenn Phillips scored 25 runs, and Washington Sundar was also among the runs with an 18.
For Punjab Kings, Vijaykumar Vyshak was the pick of the bowlers with 3 wickets, Yuzvendra Chahal took 2, and Marco Jansen scalped a wicket.
GT got off to a decent start but lost wickets at regular intervals. Rahul Tewatia remained not out at 11 in the end, taking the team past the 160-run mark.
As the game enters its final phase, Punjab Kings are in a commanding position due to Connolly's electrifying batting.