The last time Punjab Kings reach the IPL final, all the way back in 2014 when they were still in silver and red and stylised as the Kings XI, the subsequent season was a disappointing follow-up. In 2015, they finished at the bottom of the table after being losing finalists, as they lost all the steam and couldn’t get any momentum going.
The first goal for the PBKS batch of 2026 will be to avoid that fate – to remain competitive and spirited, and to head back to the finals and go one step further in search of a maiden IPL title. But with a number of uncapped Indian talents being key to Punjab’s team, that is easier said than done: the task will be cut out for captain-coach duo of Shreyas Iyer and Ricky Ponting as they try to win that elusive title.
Speaking to Hindustan Times in the JioStar Press Room, Punjab Kings batter and vice-captain Shashank Singh cast aside any concerns regarding motivation amongst the younger and more inexperienced players in the squad. For the Kings, 2026 is all about using that lost final as added motivation, with the belief that the team is good enough.
No longer a matter of survival for PBKS players
“We had 5-6 camps throughout the year, including these players (Priyansh, Prabhsimran, Wadhera). Every time we met, the motivation level was even higher than last camp. That last hurdle which we didn’t cross, everyone was quite keen to come this year with even better attitude, more pumped up, more motivated to do well for the team,” said Shashank.
{{/usCountry}}“We had 5-6 camps throughout the year, including these players (Priyansh, Prabhsimran, Wadhera). Every time we met, the motivation level was even higher than last camp. That last hurdle which we didn’t cross, everyone was quite keen to come this year with even better attitude, more pumped up, more motivated to do well for the team,” said Shashank.
{{/usCountry}}Ponting and Iyer had previously reached a final with Delhi Capitals in 2020, and they did seem to mesh well together in maintaining the energy and keeping the levels up: DC finished the 2021 season at the top of the IPL table, looking like the team to beat, before falling narrowly short in a pair of playoff games. The duo has been one of the most successful captain-coach combinations in IPL history, without having silverware to show for it, and will be eager to make that change for the sake of a winless team.
“With this team, it’s about the team goal, it’s never about the personal goal. Initially when you come to a franchise, next year ke liye apna jagah save karna hai (you want to save your spot). It’s very obvious when I played for SRH or RR, it’s more about the survival thing. With this team it’s about the team goal, and our goal was to lift the trophy,” he continued.
‘Motivation was never the funda’
Now a two-year veteran in the PBKS setup, Shashank has impressed as a lower-order finisher year upon year, making that role his own enroute to Punjab’s run to the final. With 350+ runs in each of the last two seasons with a strike-rate at 160, Shashank has also established himself in the leadership group, taking over captaincy in Iyer’s absence late in the 2025 league stage.
In that role as vice-captain, Shashank was entirely behind his unit, convinced that the hunger to win and get to that final match had gone nowhere.
“Whenever we meet in these camps, it’s about what better can we do the win the cup. The motivation was never the funda. Everyone is very charged up, and it’s more like a family to us, so motivation was never an issue, the hunger is very much there,” promised the lower-order batter.
Much of the PBKS team is unchanged, a year older and wiser: while the absence of key figure Josh Inglis will be a big dent in the team’s plans, there remains enough domestic quality to make up for it, and an identity as a young team that means they will always have a chip on their shoulder that will drive them towards winning.