Former Punjab Kings (PBKS) skipper Ravichandran Ashwin has lashed out at the team's owners, saying that if the team fails to qualify for the playoffs in IPL 2026, it would be their fault.
Ashwin took some special offense to the fact that the Punjab Kings keep splitting their home matches between Mohali/Mullanpur and Dharamsala.
In IPL 2026, PBKS split their 7 designated home matches between two stadiums, playing 4 at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur and 3 at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala.
At the time of writing, PBKS have played 6 of their 7 designated home matches, including all four at Mullanpur and 2 out of 3 at Dharamsala.
In their first 7 matches of this season, the Punjab Kings had 6 wins and one no-result. They were flying at the top of the points table until a very violent crash.
After their unprecedented first half, PBKS have gone on to have an even more unprecedented second half. They are currently on a five-match losing streak, and their playoffs hopes have been severely damaged.
Of these five matches, three have been at home - one in Mullanpur and two in Dharamsala.
"I know it is wrong" - Ravichandran Ashwin
Ashwin spoke to journalist Vimal Kumar on his YouTube channel and compared Punjab's variance with the stability of successful teams like the Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings. While MI and CSK have five IPL titles each, PBKS have none.
"Let me ask you a question. KKR, CSK, and MI, the three teams that have won the highest number of trophies-3, 5, and 5-out of the 19 seasons, they have won 13 trophies in total. SRH has won two (Deccan Chargers and SRH). Take it as 15. Have these teams ever changed their home venue?" Ashwin said in the video.
"Look, we can say from the outside that Punjab aren't doing well, but because I have personally been there, I know it is wrong. We won five matches in Mohali, then we changed venues and got knocked out of the tournament," he added.
Ashwin had served as captain of the Punjab Kings in both 2018 and 2019, but the team did not qualify in the top four in either year.
After their unbeaten start to the season, the Punjab Kings find themselves in a situation where they will need to win both their remaining matches in order to keep their qualification hopes up.
Not just that, Punjab will also need some help from other results if they want to make it into the last four.
Ashwin said that failure to adapt to the new home venue was the main problem for the Punjab Kings.
"So, I am saying that, sure, Punjab have suffered consecutive defeats, but they are not playing in Mullanpur; they are playing in Dharamsala, where the wicket is not that good to bat first on. The ball stays a little low in the first half, so it will take time for them to adapt."
"Their batting order is scoring 30-40 runs fewer, or 20 runs fewer, because they have to adapt. We can all say that Punjab are struggling and have suffered five consecutive defeats, or that 'this is what happens in Punjab'. No, they have played two of those games at a changed home venue," he said.
No Permanent Fortress: The Hidden Reason Behind Punjab’s StrugglesAshwin?️: KKR, CSK, and MI are three teams that have won a lot of trophies - between them, they hold 13 trophies. Have these teams ever changed their home venues❓We can all say that Punjab is struggling with… pic.twitter.com/kXixirotiR
— AkCricTalks??? (@AKCricTalks) May 16, 2026PBKS' next match in IPL 2026
The Punjab Kings will play a repeat clash of last year's final in their penultimate league stage game. Last year's runners-up, PBKS, will be hosting defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala on May 17.
RCB will qualify for the playoffs if they manage to beat Punjab on Sunday, while a sixth consecutive loss is almost sure to end PBKS' season.
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