Why did Shashank Singh miss PBKS vs RR clash of IPL 2026?
Shashank Singh was part of PBKS’ previous game against Delhi Capitals.
Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) are clashing in match 40 of the Indian Premier League 2026, which is taking place at MYS International Cricket Stadium in New Chandigarh. RR have the tough challenge of ending PBKS’s winning streak in the clash, as the latter have not lost any of their seven games so far.
Shreyas Iyer & Co. have replicated their impeccable form from last season. Winning six out of seven games (one no result), they take the the top position in the points table with 13 points.
In the 40th match of IPL 2026, RR captain Riyan Parag won the toss and chose to field first. They made two changes to their playing XI, replacing Shimron Hetmyer and Ravi Bishnoi with Dasun Shanaka and Yash Raj Punja respectively.
On the other hand, Punjab Kings made two changes, with Shashank Singh missing out being the big one. He was part of the previous game against Delhi Capitals, where Punjab pulled off a 265-run target to record the highest-ever chase in IPL history.
Why is Shashank Singh not playing PBKS vs RR clash of IPL 2026?
Notably, the right-handed batsman suffered a hamstring injury in the previous game against DC. He is under treatment and will need time to recover from his injury.
As a result, PBKS have inducted Suryansh Shedge as a replacement. They also added Lockie Ferguson as a replacement for Xavier Bartlett.
Speaking at the toss about playing XI, Iyer said, “We would have loved to bowl first as well because I asked one of our team members, he told me that the wicket was basically covered for a couple of days due to bad weather, but other than that, I personally feel that any time you bat or bowl, it’s a great challenge and all of us are pretty proactive irrespective of the decision of toss. We have one forced change. So, Suryansh (Shedge) comes in for Shashank and the other one is Lockie (Ferguson) come in for X (Xavier Bartlett)”.
PBKS playing XI vs RR: Prabhsimran Singh(w), Priyansh Arya, Shreyas Iyer(c), Cooper Connolly, Suryansh Shedge, Nehal Wadhera, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Lockie Ferguson, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.
Shashank featured in all seven previous games in IPL 2026, smacking 70 runs in five innings at a high strike rate of 194. Since PBKS’ top and middle-order batsmen have shown brilliant form so far, Shashank didn’t get enough deliveries to play. However, he did a brilliant job in the death overs in the few opportunities he got.
Why is Shashank Singh not part of PBKS vs RR clash?
Shashank was not available for the match due to a hamstring injury.
Who won the toss in PBKS vs RR clash?
RR skipper Riyan Parag won the toss and opted to field first.
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Vikas Singh Derek is a core cricket-lover since childhood and has always followed the sport both in his personal and professional life. He started his school life by watching cricket at home with family. Later, he played cricket on the field at local clubs during college. After his Master's in Journalism from Mumbai, he followed his passion by covering cricket news across various digital media. Since 2015, he has been an aspiring sports journalist and cricket content writer with over 50K+ articles.