New Delhi: Delhi Capitals have been fined for failing to complete their overs within the stipulated time during their IPL 2026 clash against Punjab Kings at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala.Delhi Capitals captain Akshar Patel won the toss and elected to field first, but the visitors struggled badly to get a handle on Punjab Kings’ explosive batting line-up. The slow over-rate penalty came during the 20th over of the innings, forcing DC to field only four fielders outside the 30-yard circle instead of the five allowed.
Punjab Kings made full use of the advantage and piled up a massive 210/5 in their 20 overs – their highest first innings total against Delhi Capitals in IPL history.The innings was bolstered by another sensational innings from Priyansh Arya, who scored 56 off just 33 balls, while skipper Shreyas Iyer led the innings with an unbeaten 59 off 36 balls.Punjab Kings started brilliantly in the powerplay, scoring 72 runs in the first six overs at a run rate of 12.00, which included four fours and six sixes. Although Delhi Capitals pulled things back briefly in the middle overs, PBKS once again surged at the death, scoring 61 runs with five sixes in the last five overs.Mitchell Starc and Madhav Tiwari took two wickets each for Delhi Capitals. However, it turned out to be a forgettable outing for Starc, who conceded 57 runs – the costliest spell of his IPL career. It was the second highest in any T20 innings, behind the 60 he scored against New Zealand during the 2021 T20 World Cup final in Dubai.The batting fireworks of Punjab Kings also continued their impressive trend of 200-plus totals. PBKS now have seven 200-plus scores in IPL 2026, just one behind the combined IPL record of eight by Gujarat Titans in IPL 2025 and Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2026.Interestingly, Delhi Capitals played an all-pace attack throughout the innings, making it the 13th time a team has bowled at pace for all 20 overs in an IPL innings and the first since 2016.
