An unfortunate off-field incident involving spectators and cheerleaders overshadowed part of Punjab Kings’ crucial seven-wicket win over Lucknow Super Giants in their IPL 2026 clash at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow on Saturday. With PBKS fighting to keep their playoff hopes alive, the atmosphere was charged, but visuals from the venue showed a section of fans allegedly misbehaving with cheerleaders during the match. Security staff and police quickly stepped in, while female officers were also seen speaking to those involved and restoring order.
On the field, Punjab Kings produced a powerful response through captain Shreyas Iyer, who played a magnificent, unbeaten innings of 101 off just 51 balls to guide his side to victory.
It was Iyer’s maiden IPL century, and it could not have come at a better time as PBKS ended a six-match losing streak and stayed in the playoff race. “I am ecstatic, to be honest,” Shreyas Iyer said after the match. “It is my first IPL hundred and it came at the right time when the team needed it. We won eventually after six consecutive losses.”
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The PBKS skipper also praised his bowlers for keeping Lucknow Super Giants under pressure during the middle overs, especially Yuzvendra Chahal, who returned excellent figures of 2/25
During the LSG vs Punjab match at Lucknow’s Ekana Stadium, some fans were seen misbehaving with the cheerleaders and troubling them. Police then arrived and took action against those fans.
Why do such things always happen in UP? pic.twitter.com/3iOQDnpc8Y
— 𝐑𝐮𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐢𝐢⁴⁵ (@rushiii_12) May 23, 2026
“Our bowlers did brilliantly, especially Yuzi, the way he restricted runs in the middle. It is a great positive, and we will be supporting the Mumbai Indians tomorrow,” Iyer added.
Earlier, Josh Inglis top-scored for LSG with a fighting 72 off 44 balls as the hosts posted 196/6. However, Punjab’s chase was built on a match-winning 140-run partnership between Iyer and Prabhsimran Singh, who contributed a valuable 69.
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Lucknow captain Rishabh Pant admitted his side fell short with the bat. “We knew batting second gets easier here, so we were a few runs short. We want to take the positives from this season and build on them. We need to take accountability and come back stronger next season,” Pant said.
